Freedom Planet: Curse of the Dark Stone
by Mixedfan8643
Summary: Sash Lilac has a fear. She's concerned that she might run into Lord Brevon or Natalya the Lead Scarf again. Unfortunately, her fears come true as her two biggest enemies join forces and take an interest in a deadly artefact...the Dark Stone. What is it and why is it so dangerous?
1. Prologue: A Dragon's Nightmare

**_Well folks, here it is, the sequel to my hit story Freedom Planet: The Christmas Raid! It'll be taking more plot threads from the game and featuring some more familiar elements than I did in the Christmas Raid. _**

**_And also, the return of Lord Brevon! ;) _**

**_Enjoy! :D_**

_Prologue: A Dragon's Nightmare_

_Lilac the Dragon Girl could hardly believe what had happened to her._

_One moment she had been infiltrating an insidious base located on the outskirts of Jade Creek. Sitting just at the end of the long flowing river was a metallic base that supposedly housed the madman that she and her friends had been trying to find and take down. He was not of Avalician origin, he was as alien to them as their friend Torque was, the difference being that he was not the nice man that Torque was. He was described as very dangerous and above all, a total powerhouse with a huge army and a total disregard for life other than his own. He had crash-landed on Avalice and was stealing the Kingdom Stone to use it for his own needs. Lilac and her two friends Carol the Wildcat and Milla the Hound had teamed up with Torque to get the stone back. Without the stone, Avalice would have no energy left to survive so it was compulsory that they got it back. On their quest though, Torque had been captured by the madman's forces and Lilac had come to this very base to save him._

_Now…she was the one who needed saving. And desperately. She had ended up face-to-face with the man who had stolen the Kingdom Stone. Only describing him as a man would be entirely false. More like a monster out of a child's nightmare. His name was Lord Brevon and upon seeing him, Lilac's reaction had been nothing short of pure shock and horror. He was a huge, muscular green alien with fearsome red eyes, heavy orange and silver armour and a flowing brown cape that seemed to make him appear even larger. The only non-threatening thing about his appearance was his abnormally large unibrow, perched ridiculously between his eyes but the rest of him was so fearsome that Lilac hadn't even paid attention to them. The furious dragon had tried to take down Brevon. But instead, she had been taken down in one hit. The alien moved faster than she could have anticipated and had strength beyond what she had seen before. After being beaten, the galactic warlord and taken Lilac to his torture chamber and had strapped her to a blood-red iron bed with clamps around her neck, wrists and ankles. There were wires attached to the bed and a glass casing sealed Lilac in. Even if the Avalician somehow broke free of the bed, she would still be trapped. There was a hole above her with three metal prongs jutting out from it. Was something supposed to come out and hit her? Lilac didn't want to know. The dragon also noticed that her trademark tendrils had been severed. Brevon was obviously a man who didn't leave anything to chance. She had used them to take down his forces…well not anymore. The severed tendrils lay draped on an iron rail near the bed she was fastened to, dripping with blood. Her eyes opened up and she saw the cause of Avalice's political conflicts and the shattering of its fragile peace…Lord Brevon himself. He was at a computer though he seemed to somehow know that his prisoner was awake. Without turning around, he spoke in his menacing, growling voice to her._

_**"Why do you fight?" **he demanded._

_The dragon decided not to answer that question. She closed her eyes again, pretending to still be asleep. Brevon wasn't fooled._

_**"I know you're awake. Answer the question! Why do you fight?!" **Brevon repeated, his tone a lot more serious._

_There was something not quite real about his voice. It was the kind of voice that somehow made any word he said sound like a threat. He truly was as alien as they came. Deciding not to keep up the pretence anymore, Lilac answered the alien's question._

_"For my friends. I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe from freaks like you!" the dragon spat venomously._

_Surprisingly, the nefarious warlord didn't seem perturbed by the insult. It was as if Lilac hadn't said a word at all. His response was a menacing cackle before he delivered his answer._

_**"Keep them safe?"** he sneered, **"Every move you've made has put them DIRECTLY in harm's way. Destroying our property, assisting our sworn enemies, attempting sabotage against our mission which, by the way, has NOTHING to do with your world. We're leaving this barbaric planet behind as soon as our ship is repaired."**_

_The dragon wasn't entirely sure if Brevon was lying or not. For somebody who claimed that his mission had "Nothing to do with her world", he seemed very much interested in Avalice. Especially the Kingdom Stone. It made Lilac sick to think that somebody could dare paint his own mission that way._

_"You forgot the part where you took our Kingdom Stone!" the dragon retorted, "Where you ruined years of peace between my people and put thousands in danger!"_

_**"An unfortunate side effect yes…but I wouldn't have resorted to such drastic measures if you had the common sense to stay out of our affairs!" **Brevon snapped viciously, **"Thanks to YOU, your companions are in more danger than ever."**_

_What truly made Lilac feel nervous about that statement wasn't just the thought of her friends in more peril than before, but the sheer and utter confidence in Brevon's voice. He delivered his lines as if he held all the cards and that he was on top of the game. And as far as Lilac knew, the warlord very likely was on top of the game. Terrible images filled her head, images of her friends suffering grievously and possibly dying all around her. Was it all her fault? Had she endangered them all just by wanting to do the right thing? Maybe staying out of it all might have been wiser after all. Brevon smirked at his prisoner's frightened face._

_**"Allow me to show you the consequences of your stupidity."** he crowed._

_The huge alien turned around and pressed a button on the keyboard to the computer he had been standing by the whole time. What was Brevon intending to show her? Lilac was cautiously curious as a nearby shutter opened up and revealed a surprising sight for her. In another room but able to see her thanks to the open shutter before him was the captured Torque! The alien's arms were spread out beside him with heavy iron cuffs keeping them in place. There were two of Brevon's minions standing guard beside him. They were hideous aliens with one eye and encased in an armour that had green liquid swirling around their heads, presumably to keep them alive or to feed them in some way. Torque's eyes widened in horror at the sight of Lilac restrained and in Brevon's power. The alien had developed a fondness for the dragon and her friends and knowing that his enemy was as dangerous as they could get, the mere sight of Lilac in trouble made him feel very afraid for her._

_"Lilac!" Torque blurted in horror._

_"I had to do something!" Lilac shrieked back at her friend._

_**"Answers commander. Give them to me." **Brevon purred menacingly, his malevolent voice resonating in the commander's ears and making him shudder._

_Torque was in torment. He didn't know what to do. Having been in this situation many times before, he was never sure whether giving in to the demanding question was a good idea anymore. He could easily tell Brevon what he wanted but any information to Brevon could be dangerous. He knew that the alien was very smart, so smart in fact that his intelligence alone had given him his fearsome reputation. Brevon truly proved that the brain was the deadliest weapon anybody could wield. On the other hand, Torque knew that the wrong decision could get him and Lilac killed, maybe Lilac before him. Having to watch her die was the worst thing that he could go through. Lilac was only sixteen, far too young to die at Brevon's hands. He couldn't let it happen. But he couldn't let Brevon get his way either. The armour-clad alien narrowed his eyes at his prisoner._

_**"Don't be a fool. You know how far I'll go to get the information I need." **he snarled._

_The green-skinned alien knew full well what Brevon meant. He had seen it many times before and was likely about to see it again. But even if he caved in, Brevon might torture Lilac anyway. No matter what Torque thought, the choices he had swimming in his head seemed to be the wrong ones. Lilac, despite her fear, seemed willing to let whatever was about to happen to her happen. Lilac was the kind of person who'd stake her life on the line then let the enemy get what he or she wanted._

_"Don't tell him anything!" she pleaded._

_Torque lowered his head and closed his eyes, seeming to confide with Lilac's pleads. But in his heart, he knew that it wouldn't do either of them a bit of good. Though he supposed it would be better to take whatever secrets he had to his grave. Brevon smirked at Torque wickedly, his hideous face somehow looking even uglier with that single smirk._

_**"Very well. Don't say I didn't warn you."** he sneered._

_Without another word, the sadistic world-conqueror turned a switch on the computer's keypad. As he turned around to witness what was about to happen, a sinister whirring sound filled his prisoner's ears. Lilac's heart stopped. What was going to happen to her now? Never in her life had she been so scared. Then suddenly the whirring sound stopped and there was a nasty silence. A very brief nasty silence. Then it happened. Before Lilac knew what was happening, a giant streak of blue lightening shot down from the top of Lilac's glass prison and hit her like a punch to the face. The dragon howled in agony as electricity coursed through her veins. She was in total agony. The lightening streak attacked every inch of her body and began tearing away at her skin. Brevon watched, clearly enjoying what he was doing to the insolent girl who had the gall to get in his way. She deserved this and he was happy to be giving her what she deserved. Torque's head raised and his eyes shot open as he saw what he had been dreading happening before him. Lilac's screams made his heart ache with grief and his eyes began to feel hot with tears that wanted to fall down his face. How could he let this happen to an innocent girl like her? He should have given in to Brevon's demands and spared Lilac the agony she was going through. As Lilac's howls got louder, the alien finally cracked._

_"I'm the last one! There's no one else left! There, you happy?!" spat Torque angrily._

_The electricity stopped and Lilac was given one precious moment to breathe. She didn't seem too damaged by the ordeal though she could still feel the crackling electricity in her veins. Brevon grinned. How pathetic these heroes were. The moment their friend gets hurt, they suddenly pour out the answers like water from a running tap. Why did the morally good constantly waste their emotions on pointless things such as love and compassion for others? Didn't they know that all that did was make them weak and easy to exploit? Sentimentality was something he never understood and Brevon was glad he didn't understand it. He would be as weak as his enemies otherwise. Brevon then turned around to his computer and turned the switch again. Torque's eyes widened so much that he swore they were going to leap out of his sockets._

_"I'M TELLING THE TRUTH!" he protested._

_Brevon ignored him as the eerie whirring of the machine started up again and Lilac found herself receiving another round of electric-torture. Once again, the dragon howled in pain as she was brutally electrocuted. It was much worse the second time around for the pains of the first time were with her. Her pained body screamed in protest to the horrible electric shock that coursed through her veins. It got even worse though for as the shocks carried on, Lilac's skin began to blacken in areas and the strand of hair over her eye ended up disintegrating into nothing but strands of blackened skin. Torque could only watch helplessly. Lilac didn't deserve this hell. How could he have dragged her into this? Why hadn't he convinced her to stay out of it? She could be back at home safe and sound without this horror happening to her now! Brevon switched the machine off and allowed Lilac the pleasure of resting from the torture. The dragon gasped and panted, relieved that the torture was over. Her scaly skin had charred and blackened, her face and horns being the only parts that still retained her proper colours. She looked terrible. Her beauty had been snatched away by two single jolts of lightening fired upon her by a single, horrible alien with a terrible way of life. Lilac not only looked terrible, she felt absolutely rotten. She could barely remain conscious due to how much pain she was in. But she was more disgusted at how she had allowed herself to be subjected to this. Why hadn't she been more careful? How could she have let Brevon take her out so easily? Brevon smiled at Torque, briefly ignoring the charred prisoner he had just been torturing._

_**"That's nice to know, but I was more interested in your resolve." **Brevon replied, **"You crack easily, it seems."**_

_So that was it. Brevon had mostly tortured Lilac for his own sadistic pleasure. And seeing Torque's reaction had just made it even better for him. The alien couldn't believe that he had given Brevon such satisfaction. He lowered his head in shame as the alien walked over to Lilac, his heavy metal feet making an ominous clanking sound that seemed to spell doom with every step he took. He observed Lilac, pleased with what he had done to her. She wouldn't be of any use to his enemy now in this terrible state. With a sadistic smile, he spoke to the blackened dragon._

_**"And this one…I have a funny feeling about you." **he snorted **"I bet I could hack at your limbs all day and you'd STILL find a way to bite back."**_

_He had seen many people like Lilac before, he knew what they were like and how they worked._

_"I'LL DO MORE THAN THAT YOU MONSTER!" Lilac shrieked at the top of her voice._

_It was as if she knew those were the last words she would ever speak and she wanted Brevon to remember them until the day he died. But the words had no effect on the alien warlord. It was as if he hadn't even taken them into consideration._

_**"When we've lured the rest of your group into our hands, you'll be at the top of our execution list." **the alien growled menacingly…_

* * *

><p>"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"<p>

Sash Lilac sat up in her bed and opened her eyes, screaming loudly as her nightmare ended. The purple-skinned dragon allowed herself to pant for a moment as she took in what had just happened. She felt her pounding heart and replayed the events of her nightmare. She had been brutally tortured for Brevon's sick amusement and to make Torque crack. The experience had been traumatizing and though she still remained optimistic and carefree, the whole scene still haunted her like the bad memory it was. On many occasions Lilac had dreamt about her horrible experiences in Brevon's torture room. And the dreams were all the same, horrible and a painful reminder on what had happened to her all those months ago. It had happened a long time ago but Lilac felt that it may as well have happened yesterday. The dragon sighed, her heartbeat now slower and her breathing more controlled.

"Phew…thank goodness…just a nightmare…" the dragon whispered to herself, "That's all it was…and all it'll ever be."

She lay back down, her head sinking gently into the pillow. She was lying on the top bunk of her bunk bed with her best friend Carol Tea snoozing peacefully beneath her. The reptilian girl could still hear the feline girl's snoring underneath her. She hadn't woken her up. That was good. Lilac knew that Carol HATED having her sleep disturbed. The dragon closed her eyes, hoping she could relax again. But the nightmare had made it harder for her to fall back asleep. She wasn't sure if she would even be able to now.

It had been three months since Christmas had come and gone. It was now March and Spring was beginning to blossom over the world of Avalice. During that faithful December, Lilac and her friends had foiled The Christmas Raid, a nefarious plan carried out by the leader of the Red Scarves herself, Natalya. The dragon girl had once been part of the Red Scarves along with her green-furred companion but a murder committed by Spade the Panda had given them all the reasons in the world to leave Natalya and the Red Scarves for good. Killing was the one line they wouldn't cross and they refused to be associated with murderers. Then came last December and they had ended up tangling with their former crime boss again. Natalya had subdued the two traitors, as well as their new friend Milla the Hound, and forced them to rejoin the Red Scarves for her precious plan to rule all of Avalice. Her ambitions had become her own undoing for Lilac, Carol and Milla had fought against Natalya and won. The Christmas Raid had been ruined and the Red Scarves had been locked up. Natalya however had vanished before she could even be punished, as had Spade so the two were still on the loose and had been for the past three months. Surprisingly, even though Natalya's injuries should have healed by now, Lilac hadn't run into her again. It was as if Natalya had been practicing "How Not To Be Seen" and it was working. That hadn't been good for Lilac at all. The anxious dragon had had nightmares about her too, worried that at some point, she was going to come back and kill her. One nightmare had involved Natalya killing her in her sleep. She worried that it could happen and she'd be powerless to stop her. But it hadn't happened, there was nothing to worry about.

Lilac thought back to meeting Natalya again last year. She had been surprised and disgusted at how sick and twisted the woman was, more so than she had remembered. It made her feel sick to think she had once worked for her. But what had been the most surprising thing about Natalya was the fact that she had turned out to be a dragon herself. Lilac had been gobsmacked. She remembered all too well how she had kicked the evil woman's helmet clean off her head and exposed her for the first time. She had never expected her to be a dragon. But it made sense considering Natalya's fascination with them and how the evil dragon considered the very race to be special given they had blessed Avalice with their Kingdom Stone and inspired the three kingdoms that the Avalicians took refuge in today. Lilac did consider herself to be special since she was a dragon, but not in the way Natalya did. She was special for more reasons than being a dragon and fighting for something special was more special to her than being a dragon. Despite hating Natalya, the teenage Avalician actually felt sorry for her in one aspect. If only she could see that being a dragon wasn't an excuse to consider herself greater than everybody else. She could have been VERY special but she was wasting her special gifts on petty crime and hatred. Lilac wished the woman could see things her way and that Avalice wasn't just a kingdom to rule. Unable to fall back asleep, Lilac sat up again. Brevon and Natalya were both on her mind now and she knew that she needed a way to get them out of her mind.

"Maybe a little fresh air will help…" the dragon mused to herself.

She climbed out of bed, allowing her bare feet to carry her to the floor. The wooden floor felt cold against her skin but her feet were soon warm again as she slipped her trademark boots on. Glancing over at the still sleeping Carol, she walked away from the bed and slipped out through the bedroom door, keeping as quiet as possible. But Carol had heard her. The sound of Lilac climbing out of bed had disturbed her and Carol had opened her eyes just as the bedroom door closed. Curious, the wildcat climbed out of her bunk and pulled on her shoes. What was Lilac doing up at this time of night? Carol had NEVER seen Lilac get out of bed so early before, and she had been living with Lilac for a long time. The feline tomboy sneaked out of the bedroom and saw that Lilac had gone through the door at the other end of the corridor and onto the balcony. She, Lilac and the Basset family (Milla and her parents Miguel and Lela) lived up in a treehouse, which Lilac had built herself. The house had two floors with the bedrooms on the upper floor. Outside, perched above the front door of the bottom floor, was a balcony. Lilac was now standing in the balcony and observing the beautiful, starry night sky up above. The dragon only did this if she was troubled. Carol shook her head sadly. She hated seeing Lilac looking troubled. What was on her best friend's mind? Coral just had to know. She walked up behind Lilac, the dragon's attention focused on only the night sky. Judging by how dark it was, it must be midnight. There was hours to go before morning. The moon shone, its soft, luminous glow making the sky less dark. Lilac was staring at it as if hoping to find an answer to her problems.

"Lilac? Are…are you alright?" Carol asked worriedly.

Lilac gasped in alarm and turned around, relieved that it was just Carol who had said that.

"Oh phew…it's just you Carol. Sorry, I was miles away for a moment." the female dragon said.

"I heard you getting out of bed and I wondered where you was going so I looked for you and found you here." explained Carol, "What's the matter Lilac? You worried about something?"

"What makes you think I'm worried Carol?" Lilac asked as if the question was a stupid one to ask.

"You NEVER come out here unless you're worried about something." said Carol with concern in her voice, "Please Lilac, tell your best friend what's up. I hate it when you're worried."

Lilac nodded. She knew it was mean of her to try and ignore her friend's concern and pretend nothing was the matter. Sighing, she leaned back against the wooden rail and answered.

"I had a nightmare." the dragon murmured.

"Was it Natalya or Brevon?" asked Carol.

She had experienced most of Lilac's nightmares. It had gotten to a point she now knew that it was either about one or the other.

"Brevon." replied Lilac, "I was back in his torture chamber and reliving the events of last year again. Brevon's smug face, Torque's worried face, the horrible torture I went through and his threat of executing me atop of everybody else. That moment was so horrible! I can't get it out of my mind…"

"Oh Lilac, you've had that nightmare so many times before, you know that it's in the past now. No biggie." said Carol casually, "It's never gonna happen again my friend. Please don't worry about it anymore."

"I'm sorry Carol but it was just such a horrible moment that…it's hard to keep it out of my mind." Lilac said solemnly, "I'm trying to forget about it but…bad memories are harder to get rid of than you think. It's like trying to clean a permanent stain…a task that's near impossible to accomplish."

Carol nodded agreeably.

"Yeah…sometimes it's hard for me to forget about the terrible day Spade crossed our line…" the wildcat muttered bitterly, "Yeah…I know what you mean Lilac."

"Glad you do Carol." the dragon replied softly, "But it's not just Brevon who's on my mind a lot these days. I worry about Natalya too."

"Why are you worried about her? She's a demon in dragon's clothing! I hope we never see her again." the wildcat said with a scowl.

"It's not in the way you think Carol." Lilac said, a slight tone of anger in her voice, "I mean in the sense that like Brevon, she got away before she could suffer any punishment. Brevon got away after I half-beat him to death and so has Natalya. So now I worry about seeing either of those two again. Brevon might come to Avalice for revenge and Natalya might be hunting me down right now. Brevon hasn't been seen in months I know and Natalya hasn't been seen since Christmas Eve…but it could still happen that either one of them comes back for us. Or worse…what if we end up fighting them BOTH? I don't think I can bear with a thought like that! Brevon and Natalya on their own are bad enough but if they were together…I think that would be the end of us."

The horrible image began to piece itself inside Lilac's head. Brevon was a sadistic world-conquering warlord and Natalya was a cold-hearted dragon with a criminal streak. If they ever joined forces or anything along those lines, Avalice could well be in its darkest hour. Carol could see the fear in Lilac's face. Pretty much, the dragon girl had made two VERY big enemies so it was perfectly normal for her to be worried about them joining forces or encountering them both at the same time. And she agreed with Lilac, it would be Zero Hour for them all if Brevon and Natalya ever teamed up. But the wildcat decided not to let the thought bother her. Carol put her hands on Lilac's shoulders and looked into her frightened eyes.

"Lilac…don't worry about it." said Carol gently, "Lord Brevon won't come near us. Remember? He wasn't interested in us. All he wanted to do was leave. He won't bother coming back. And Natalya? We can handle her. She won't hurt us. The two will never meet, nor will we ever fight against both of them at once. So please my best friend, don't worry over something that'll never happen. I don't want you to be worried all the time. I worry for you when you're worried Lilac. I want you to be happy and carefree like you used to be."

The dragon took in the cat's words. She supposed that Carol had a point. Why would Brevon come back to a planet he had been so keen to get away from? True he might come back for revenge but maybe Brevon wouldn't consider them worth it. Maybe he'd ignore them and just continue doing what he was doing. And Carol was right, they could handle Natalya. Lilac herself had been the one to send her packing after all. If Natalya came for her, she'd just beat her into submission again and Carol and Milla could help her with that. Smiling, the dragon embraced her best friend gratefully.

"You're right…I'm too edgy for my own good. Thank you very much Carol." said Lilac kindly, "You're truly the best friend a dragon could ask for."

"You're welcome Lilac." said Carol sweetly, "I want nothing but the best for you Lilac. I care for you very much and I just want you to be happy."

"And I appreciate it. Thank you." said Lilac appreciatively, "I think I'm OK going back to bed now."

"That's good to hear." said Carol, "And I hope you'll dream more pleasantly for the rest of the night."

"I think I might." said Lilac with an optimistic smile.

The two girls walked back into the bedroom, leaving the night to carry on without them. Lilac now felt more positive about her life and was sure that she was safe from her two biggest enemies. She wouldn't have to worry about them anymore, not just for the rest of the night, but for the rest of her life. She could now sleep easy and dream more pleasantly. And as she and Carol climbed back into their beds to allow themselves the luxury of sleep to return to them, the dragon was lying back against her pillow with a smile on her face. The rest of the night was going to be much more pleasant indeed…more so, then what was going to happen the next morning…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Aww, Carol's such a sweetheart! ^^<strong>_

_**So Lilac has nothing to worry about anymore...or does she? The plot begins to thicken next time as we enter Chapter 1. Get ready readers, it's gonna be an exciting ride...**_


	2. Chapter 1: Villains Rising

_Chapter 1: Villains Rising_

"WORK FASTER YOU SLOWCOACHES! LORD BREVON DEMANDS THAT THIS SHIP BE OPERATIONAL IN FIVE MINUTES! YOU DON'T WANT TO MAKE HIM MAD DO YOU?!" barked the loud and obnoxious voice of General Serpentine.

The reptilian general was watching over a horde of alien soldiers that were rushing to and fro in order to get their master's ship ready in time for take-off. The very thought of making Lord Brevon angry seemed to magically make the soldiers speed up their progress for moments ago, they had been slowing down but then Serpentine had bellowed at them and now they were picking up the pace again. Alien soldiers, big and small, frantically worked as fast as they could, hoping to get the ship ready in time. Serpentine's beady eyes swept over the workers as they ran around checking systems and making adjustments to whatever needed adjusting. He smiled to himself. Soon the ship would be ready and then they would make their journey to the planet that had dared to stand up to his glorious master…and actually beat him, thus humiliating him and turning his very name into a joke.

Serpentine was a snake with sharp fangs, green scales and red eyes. He also had a habit of shouting constantly, even when he doesn't really need to. This was because Serpentine was one of those people who felt that being loud asserted his authority over everybody else. It also made him feel bigger and stronger than those beneath him. Serpentine had a rather unusual feature for a snake. He had mechanical arms that were attached to a metal chest plate around his upper body. Those arms gave him the ability to do what snakes wouldn't be able to do given their lack of any appendages. It was also why he was so loyal to Lord Brevon. He had given him those arms and Serpentine was forever grateful to him for giving him his beloved metal appendages. Unfortunately for the abrasive general, the arms had a nasty side-effect. They affected his brain in ways that made him seem quite insane. Not that it affected the snake's competence in the battlefield. In a fight, he was still a deadly opponent to any who got in his way. His trigger-happy tendencies were mostly the reason why he was so dangerous, as well as his love for piloting huge mechs armed with heavy weapons.

Serpentine had a score to settle with Avalice. He remembered all too well how Lilac and her friends had made total fools out of him. They had trashed his mechas and even when Brevon had mutated him into a stronger, dragon-esque version of himself, they had still beaten him and made him look like a total chump. All that had been left of his mutated form that day was his chest plate, and he had slithered out of it to find that he no longer had his arms. Such a turnout made him go crazy with rage and he had one thought on his mind for Avalice…

Revenge.

Brevon had retrieved him from his doomed vessel before it exploded and had fled the ship in an escape pod. So both lord and general had fled the Dreadnought and had come across a fleet of ships belonging to Brevon thousands of miles away from Avalice. Truly serendipitous turnouts for the two for Brevon wasn't sure if he'd even come across any of his ships or not. The fleet had brought them back to Brevon's home planet, which was still in danger due to the suffering he had caused to other worlds. As much as Brevon and Serpentine wanted revenge on Avalice, they knew that they couldn't leave their home world to suffer otherwise they would run out of supplies they need for a revenge attack on Avalice. Or worse, they wouldn't have a planet to come home to if they ever needed to return there for any reason. So the past few months in which Avalice had been spared his monstrous presence, Lord Brevon had been fighting to save his planet. As of now, he had partially succeeded. His planet wasn't completely safe yet but it was safe enough for him to leave it in his army's care. They could easily handle the rest of the war without him.

Now that he was confident enough to leave his planet in the care of his strongest robots, soldiers and mechs, Brevon had gathered around the forces he needed to launch a revenge attack on Avalice. In the months that had passed after the events of The Christmas Raid on Avalice, Brevon and his soldiers had been building a new Dreadnought ship for them to take to the planet. Brevon's plan was to take a fleet to Avalice and then raze the planet to make it pay for ruining his reputation. The Dreadnought would be the flagship of the invading fleet that would burn the planet to a cinder. Serpentine had been thrilled by the idea and he couldn't wait to get started already. He had a glorious image in his crazed mind which involved him brutally slaughtering Lilac, Carol and Milla with his bare, metal hands. And when Brevon's insidious fleet arrived on Avalice, that image would come true for him. His reputation and Brevon's reputation also would be restored and then nobody would ever stand up to them again.

As Serpentine daydreamed about the destruction of Avalice, a large hovering robot loomed up behind him, completely silent as it moved. The reptilian mercenary failed to notice the mechanical figure approaching him from behind. The robot was unusually shaped with long, green, whippy tendrils with blades at the end and a green orb that was presumably its optic and how it could see. The body was mostly black and grey. It was Brevon's messenger and also a torture technician. Few people who ended up in the mech's tendrils lived to tell the tale.

"Good evening General." the robot said in a feminine, robotical voice.

The way she had spoken was eerily polite considering what her occupations were. It was as if the robot was programmed to make her masters feel more content and maybe try to put her victims at ease before she did her deadly work on them. The snake leaped about a foot in the air. He had been so startled by the unnoticed arrival of this robot that he almost jumped straight out of his mechanical arms. He turned around sharply and shot a death glare at the robot.

"DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT SYNTAX!" Serpentine bellowed angrily, "YOU WANNA GIVE ME A HEART-ATTACK?!"

"Scans reveal that your heart is quite healthy and beating normally, even after my unintended scare. Diagnosis: you are fine." Syntax replied bluntly, "How goes the work of the Dreadnought?" she added politely.

"Should be done soon." Serpentine muttered, glaring at the workers that were trying their best to get the ship done in time, "Though they really oughta work faster!" he suddenly bellowed at them as if trying to hammer in the point that they were working too slowly.

"Lord Brevon demands that this ship be operational in five minutes and not a second later general. Your crew had better get a move on." the fem-bot droned, her voice flat and emotionless as she spoke.

"I KNOW THAT! DON'T TELL ME WHAT I ALREADY KNOW YOU FLYING NUISANCE!" Serpentine barked angrily, a throbbing vessel standing up on his forehead as if to signify his rage.

"Please do not speak to me in that tone, otherwise Lord Brevon will hear repeats on what you have just rudely said to me." Syntax droned, her voice containing the faintest hints of annoyance despite her usual monotone delivery.

"Fine whatever, just quit bothering me!" snapped Serpentine, "I'll let you know when everything's ready OK?!"

Then suddenly, one of the workers stopped what he was doing and waved his hands joyfully at the snake and robot above him. Serpentine and Syntax looked down at the worker, curious on what he seemed to excited about. The general hoped it was for a good reason.

"General! General! Everything's ready!" the soldier replied happily, "All systems are green, power levels are normal and the engines are fully operational! The Dreadnought's ready to launch!"

"Well that was surprisingly sooner than expected." muttered Serpentine, a slight edge to his obnoxious voice, "Well then Syntax, you can tell our glorious lord that the ship's ready for take off!"

"I shall inform him immediately general. Inform all troops to board the ship and gather in the meeting room for Lord Brevon to debrief us all." droned Syntax.

The robot then teleported out of the room, leaving Serpentine to carry out the order that she had given him. Serpentine turned to his men and bellowed at them. It seemed that Serpentine just loved to bellow, even if the people he was bellowing at were his own men.

"WELL DON'T STAND THERE AND LOOK GORMLESS! GET TO THE MEETING ROOM!"

All the working soldiers saluted the general and then filed out of the room as quickly as possible for their mission briefing in the meeting room. Serpentine slithered after them, already excitedly picturing Avalice's destruction at the hands of Lord Brevon once they arrived at the very planet that had embarrassed his name. He hoped dearly that if Brevon was going to use the Dreadnought's firepower to destroy the planet, he would be the one to fire the cannons…

* * *

><p>Much higher up on the Dreadnought, someone was sitting alone in an isolated room that could possibly pass off as a living area. The room was small though it contained the few luxuries that a galactic world conqueror would actually need such as a bed, a cupboard to store weapons of any kind and a display case for a suit of armour. There was nothing else on offer. Not that there needed to be much on offer.<p>

The sole occupant of the room was Lord Arktivus Brevon himself. He was suiting himself up ready for the launch of his fleet's flagship vessel. He had already slipped on his suit of armour and had armed himself with his trademark dagger weapon. The dagger was unusually large for a weapon of its name and the eerie thing about the evil weapon was that it was constantly dripping with hideous, green, viscous liquid that nobody seemed to be sure on what it was or why it was always dripping with the stuff. The alien warlord slid the dagger in to his sheath and clipped on his trademark brown cape. The cape was huge and fitted well around his abnormally large shoulders. It came down to just behind his ankles and the clips for the cape were directly on the shoulder sections of his armour. If anybody yanked on his cape in a fight, it wouldn't constrict around his neck and risk him getting choked, it would just tug on his shoulders and he'd be able to break free without causing too much harm to himself. He liked it this way, it showed how pragmatic he was in his conquests and showed he didn't make mistakes that would normally put a man or woman in danger.

Brevon was like a monster out of a child's nightmare. He was abnormally large, even for his species, and every inch of his body radiated power and strength. He was powerful and it showed in his size, bulk and muscle structure. He had a thick neck, broad shoulders that were almost square in shape and an equally as broad chest that his armour showed off proudly as if he was pleased with his body and wanted to show it off. He wore heavy but powerful orange and silver armour that just added to his mass and bulk and the armour was rather cleverly designed with no armour pieces on his hips that allowed him to be more flexible and manoeuvrable in battle. His upper legs and upper arms weren't armoured either. His lower legs and lower arms had all the armour, adding more flexibility to him. His hands were exposed but his feet were shielded by heavy metallic footwear with curved up spikes that could deliver a painful blow if he ever kicked anybody with them. Whenever he walked, his feet made loud stomping sounds as if he wanted everybody on the ship to hear him coming and fear the sound that his very feet made. Every footstep he took spelt death for anybody in his way. Brevon's face was hideous with a mouth full of sharp teeth, spikes protruding down either side of his chin and ugly red eyes that seemed somehow unreal yet fitting on somebody like him. One of his less threatening trademarks was his overly large unibrow perched between his eyes. It was orange in colour and arched over his eyes with three points at the edges. It looked absurdly out of place on him yet nobody ever commented on the ridiculous unibrow for they were too focused on the man himself then what stood above his eyes. Aside from his unibrow, he had no hair anywhere else on his body. He was bald, the top of his head completely devoid of any hair, and his body was nothing more than sickly green skin.

The evil warlord was a tyrant feared in many parts of the galaxy due to his sizeable army, ruthless fighting prowess, insane strength and sadistic personality. He had conquered many worlds and had slaughtered thousands of heroes who had dared to stand up to him. He had never been beaten in any conquest he had initiated and anybody who did beat him only ended up dying horribly the second time they met. But then his unfortunate crash on Avalice had changed all of that for him.

Just over a few months ago, he had been shot down by the Chasers in a space battle and his ship just happened to crash-land on the one world that would ruin his reputation. Avalice was of no interest to him at the time and all Brevon had wanted to do was leave. He had carried out a very clever stratagem involving manipulating events behind the scenes and pitting the three kingdoms of the barbaric planet he was stranded on against each other while he made off with their Kingdom Stone. The artefact had amazing power, power greater than any he had ever seen before in his life. Not only would it have given him the power his ship needed to take off but it would double the size of his already enormous army. He could have used the power to conquer every single planet in the galaxy and nobody would ever have the power to match his relentless strength. But then the insolent dragon girl had come in and ruined everything. It made Brevon's hands shake with rage every time he thought about her. The way she had stood up to him, the way she had mown down his forces with a mere whip of her ludicrous but effective tendrils, the way she had insulted him and refused to give up no matter what he threw at her. But especially the way she had taken him on in a one-on-one battle…and actually beat him. He had taken her on with two mechs and then eventually had just thought her with his bare hands and weapon but the dragon girl had still beaten him. She had pounded him into near-submission and then destroyed his ship. Brevon had escaped in an escape pod before the ship could blow up with him on board. But to his bad luck, so had his female nemesis so she had lived to presumably gloat about beating him to her obnoxious friends, one of whom he had turned into a monster that had failed to stop the female dragon that had dared to challenge him. Whether that friend was alive or not, he didn't care. All he knew was that the dragon girl had beaten him and lived to pontificate about it.

Not only had she beaten him but she had made him a laughing stock. The Chasers no longer took him seriously and many other planets in the galaxy had actually stood up to him and his army, no longer seeing him as the threat he once was. It made Brevon sick with anger that his reputation had been destroyed by a mere child with a sparkling boost move and long whippy hair. How had she done it? How could this puny little animal have beaten him? How was she so powerful? Why had he lost to a silly little creature whose weaponry was merely long tendrils fixed to her head? It drove him insane to ask those questions and he couldn't find the answers, which drove him even crazier. Brevon wanted nothing but revenge on what the dragon girl had done to him. How dare this impudent, snot-faced, arrogant, vexing, abhorrent girl trample on his reputation and make him a joke! He was going to go back to the planet he had been so keen to get away from and he was going to make sure the little brat didn't live to stain his name any further. It seemed almost ironic how he wasn't interested in Avalice and just wanted to leave and continue his conquest. Now he was planning to return and he wouldn't leave until he had the dragon girl's head mounted on his wall. She dared to ruin his glorious, fearsome reputation and she deserved to die for it.

Brevon frowned as he finished suiting up for the big invasion that was due to happen soon. Last night he had dreamt about the Avalician dragon fighting against him once again. And he had lost, just like he always did. His defeat at the hands of this impudent yet clearly gifted child had affected him mentally. He dreamed often about the girl and his dreams always ended with him losing to her. It was as if even his dreams wanted to mock him over his failure. Not even in sleep could he escape the humiliation of what had happened to him. If Brevon was to be himself again, feared, respected and taken very seriously, he needed the dragon girl dead. And he would kill her brutally and horrifically, inflicting bloody wounds on the dragon's limbs before finally hacking her head clean off its shoulders with his ooze covered knife. Brevon had had many wonderful fantasies involving strapping the girl to the torture bed again and letting her have ten thousands volts of electricity course through her veins until she screamed for mercy and begged for him to stop like a little crying baby. Only he wouldn't stop and just leave her to die. He even fantasized leaving the electricity running even after she finally died and leaving the current to fry her body to a blackened, charred mess that barely resembled a body. Truly a deviously delicious thought for the vengeful alien warlord. Many other fantasies of his involved scraping all the flesh off of his nemesis's body with his knife, carving away until he reached the bones, her body streaming with blood as she was hacked to pieces. One of his favourites involved him grabbing the dragon by the throat and holding her in place as he hacked away at her neck with his dagger. The fantasy thought involved hacking away until eventually, her head came clean off its shoulders. None of his fantasies involved killing the girl swiftly and painlessly. He wanted her to suffer, he wanted her to know pain and torture like she had never known it before and most of all…he wanted to feel satisfied with what he had done to her. And only by killing her slowly would he achieve this. He thought about trying a little bit of all of his fantasies just to give the dragon girl the death she deserved. Once he arrived on Avalice, he would kidnap her, take her on-board the Dreadnought and raze the planet to ashes. Some emotional pain would definitely add some satisfaction to the fate he had planned for her. And once that was done, he would carry out his evil fantasy thoughts on her until the dragon practically begged him to have mercy. Mercy that he wasn't going to give her. Such a thought made Brevon smile wickedly with glee. The dragon girl was going to suffer. And she was going to suffer like hell when he got his hands on her.

He was brought out of his thoughts and back down to earth as Syntax teleported into his room and hovered behind him.

"Hello sir. You maybe interested to know that the ship is fully operational." droned Syntax emotionlessly.

**"That is good news."** the galactic conqueror growled in his menacing, guttural voice, **"My fleet can now ascend into space and make its journey to that barbaric planet."**

"Indeed sir. And you may have your revenge over what the savages have done to you." replied Syntax.

**"Yes…I had no interest in that vapid, abominable excuse for a planet."** Brevon grumbled angrily, **"I was going to leave them alone. I may have been stealing something very precious from them but that could hardly be helped. We needed it for our own needs and once we had left that world, we would never return to it. But those impudent pests stood up to me. They wouldn't let me leave peacefully…and now they've given me a reason to come back to that hideous planet."**

He clenched his fists angrily as the first seeds of rage were sown into his bloodstream.

**"They could have avoided my wrath and lived out their pathetic lives in peace…but they exploited that chance and now their lives are over."** the alien snarled, his voice nothing more than an inhuman snarl from a monster movie, **"They will wish they had never tangled themselves up in our affairs! Especially that vile, purple-skinned, female specimen!"**

He suddenly whipped out his dagger and slashed the wall with it in rage, splattering green goo all above and beneath the deep gash in the solid metal wall he had inflicted. Syntax didn't even notice the gash. She was uninterested in her master's angry outbursts. Emotions were a waste of time in her optics.

**"She has made a mockery of my name and my army and now she's going to pay for it!"** Brevon roared, **"When we arrive on the planet, you are NOT to destroy her! Nobody is. I want her brought on-board this ship alive. So that I may give her the death she deserves. Nobody is allowed to kill that female cretin but me."**

"Understood sir." the fem-bot replied flatly, "Shall I inform the troops that you're ready for mission briefing?"

**"Tell them I am on my way to the meeting room."** ordered Brevon, **"Our mission will begin once I have debriefed everyone."**

Syntax teleported straight out of the room to tell everyone that the lord himself was coming down to them. The moment she had left, Lord Brevon stomped out of the room. His heavy feet sounded like thunderclaps crashing simultaneously together, the loud sound echoing almost like a nervous whisper through the corridors as he walked.

**"I'm coming for you little girl…and I'm going to show you what happens to those who meddle with my affairs…"** the alien snarled under his breath.

* * *

><p>Spade the Panda looked at himself in the mirror as he was just finishing getting dressed for the new day that had dawned over Avalice. He had put on his brown trousers and black boots already and just as he was about to put his shirt on, he had caught sight of his reflection and had stopped for a moment to have another look at himself. Staring back at him from the mirror was himself, a museum of scars stretching out all over his naked torso. Some of the biggest scars spread evilly over his chest and if Spade turned around to see his back, he would find another museum of scars that matched the one he had on the front of his body.<p>

It made Spade feel sick every time he saw himself. He remembered how just a few hours before Christmas Day last year, Natalya the Dragon had come back to the Red Scarves's hideout to recuperate from her injuries at the hands of Lilac the Dragon Girl and she had unfortunately heard him criticizing her and thinking on how much better things were going to be with him as leader. He forever regretted saying those words for what had followed was the worst torture he had ever experienced in his life. On Christmas Day, Natalya had taken him into the torture room, stripped him to the waist, tied him up and then whipped him repeatedly. Spade had taken the first few blows in silence but as Natalya whipped him more and more, the assassin began to show signs of pain and by the end of his fiftieth lash, he was screaming for mercy. Spade hardly ever screamed for mercy, even when being interrogated by some of the world's toughest police forces. After being whipped, the vile woman had left Spade to rest for a moment before returning with a dagger that she always somehow managed to conceal up her sleeve. She had used the dagger to inflict horrible wounds on the ninja panda's chest and back. The worst part was that Natalya had been utterly merciless during the entire session. She hadn't relented on the poor Red Scarf just because he was one of her men. It was as if Natalya didn't even care about the fact she was torturing her own second-in-command. By the time the torture had been over, the damage had been done. Now Spade's torso and back contained a collection of hideous scars that would never fade away, no matter how long he lived. They were always there to remind him of that day, always there to say to him "Look what you brought upon yourself Spade". The panda couldn't bear to see himself shirtless anymore so he slipped it on and then finished off by tying his trademark red scarf around his neck. He had once been proud of his body, now he never wanted to see it again. And all because of that horrible witch he had the misfortune to be playing second fiddle to in the Red Scarves. He scowled at his reflection as if offended by its presence.

"I'm gonna get you for this Natalya…when the time is right, I'm gonna get you for this…" he snarled, imagining that Natalya was standing directly in front of himself instead of his reflection, "And with you gone, the Red Scarves will have the honour that it deserves, as well as a leader who actually cares about his comrades instead of treating them like disposable garbage bags…"

He then drew his arm back and punched at the mirror, breaking it into shards of glass that rained down onto the floor. As cathartic as it was to break something, he didn't feel any better. Spade doubted that he would feel anything even remotely close to satisfaction unless he finally got rid of Natalya himself. He often imagined creeping up on her with a razor-sharp Ace of Spades card in his hand and then slitting her throat while she was asleep. Unfortunately for him, he knew that was impossible. A member of the Red Scarves had once tried that a few months before the arrival of Lord Brevon. Natalya had woken up and stopped him before he could even swing his sword down on her. Then the would-be assassin had never been seen again. Such an attempt was suicide so Spade had resisted the urge to try that. He began wondering if he could somehow arrange an accident for Natalya to get caught up in. But he supposed that Natalya wouldn't be so easy to kill and if he stood around waiting for his contrived accident to kill her, he would give the game away and the Red Scarf leader would immediately suspect that it was no accident. He was stuck. Spade knew full well that getting rid of Natalya was impossible. Like it or not, he had no choice but to serve her faithfully until the day she, or maybe he himself, died. Spade hoped it would be the former.

"Spade! What was that noise?!" barked a fierce voice from downstairs.

"Nothing Mistress!" Spade called back, "My mirror just fell off and broke."

To make his story more credible, he took his broken mirror off the wall and laid it down on the broken glass on the floor. If anybody came up and saw it now, they would believe the story.

"Well maybe you should take more care of your belongings." the voice muttered, "Get down here now Spade! We've got a mission to carry out this morning!"

"Coming." Spade sighed.

He heaved his heavy bones over to the door and opened it. He left his bedroom, taking one last look at the broken mirror on the floor before closing the door behind him, and he strode downstairs to see his loathsome leader. Spade longed for a morning where he would wake up and Natalya wouldn't be there waiting for him when he came downstairs. The red-scarf wearing panda turned to his right at the bottom of the stairs and headed towards what he would personally consider to be the lion's den…Natalya's throne room. He opened the door and let himself inside. As predicted, Natalya was already there sitting in her throne and looking very stern and business like. Now she no longer wore the helmet that had once concealed the fact she was a dragon, Spade could read Natalya's face and over time, had come to learn more about her character than ever before.

Natalya was a slender-bodied, fit, agile woman who may have been considered beautiful on the outside, but inside she was uglier than even the most hideous of hags. She had mauve scales and a long, whippy tendril trailing out from behind her head. She had four curved horns and fearsome red eyes that made her look like a creature from hell itself. She always wore a black leather bodysuit, chunky boots and a black leather trench coat. Once, her face had been concealed by a golden helmet with a silver mouth plate and a singular oval lens that provided the field of vision she needed. Her secret now exposed, she chose to no longer hide her face and thus, the helmet was never worn again. Why bother when everybody knew what she looked like now? Natalya had a battle prowess unlike any other Avalician. She was an expert in martial arts and knew several different moves, techniques and styles that made her a force to be reckoned with. She was just as fast, maybe a little more so, than Lilac herself and had strength that could match a pride of lions. One of her most memorable fights had happened a year before Lord Brevon had ever come to Avalice. She had been surrounded by two-hundred soldiers all working for the now deceased King of Shuigang during a raid in the kingdom. She had walked away from Shuigang with merely a shoulder wound. All two-hundred of her opponents had ended up dead or hospitalized.

Yet despite all of this, Natalya had suffered a most humiliating defeat. Like Lord Brevon, she had also met her embarrassing defeat at the hands of Lilac the Dragon Girl. She had tried to carry out her most ambitious scheme in the history of the Red Scarves last December, a scheme that would have seen Avalice's three main leaders Mayor Zao of Shang Mu, The Royal Magister of Shang Tu and Prince Dail of Shuigang all dead and her, Spade and another Red Scarf as the leaders of the three respective kingdoms instead. The kingdoms would then have been united under Natalya's leadership and in a way, the dragon would be ruling the entire world in the comfort of her luxury Shuigang throne. But then she had come across Lilac and her two friends Carol and Milla. Lilac and Carol had once been members of the Red Scarves, making ridiculous amounts of money with fighting tournaments staged by Natalya herself. They had been brilliant members but after Spade had murdered somebody, the two had betrayed the scarves and left them. As soon as they had gotten involved with her affairs, Natalya had seen to trying to get Lilac and Carol back in her group and take part in The Christmas Raid. Thanks to holding Milla hostage and using the threat of dining on the little puppy (something she wouldn't actually have done for she didn't believe in cannibalism), the two had sworn fealty to her and re-joined the Red Scarves. The whole plan went downhill after that though. Lilac and Carol had managed to get rid of the speaker she had inserted on the dragon's tendrils in order to keep tabs on the girls and thus, had spilled the beans on The Magister without her knowing. As she and Spade had gone to kill King Dail on Christmas Eve, General Gong of Shang Tu had invaded her hideout and arrested all of the Red Scarves. Enraged, Natalya had attempted to kill the girls, including Lilac but all that had happened was her secret being exposed prematurely and then her eventual defeat at the hands of the sixteen year old girl.

Beaten by a child! It was so humiliating that Natalya had begun to wonder if she was even the same woman now. Ever since her defeat at Lilac's hands, Natalya had spent many nights dreaming about the impudent girl. Her dreams involved killing Lilac in the most gruesome, violent ways known to Avalician kind. Some of her dreams were so gruesome that they were unthinkable to anybody else. One of her dreams had involved strolling through a city which was littered with thousands upon thousands of bloody, mangled, dead Lilacs and smiling wickedly to herself at such sights. It was impossible to believe that Natalya had once been fond of the young girl. Being a dragon, Natalya had taken an instant liking to Sash Lilac and was determined to make the child her new second in command. She would be much happier with Lilac beside her than Spade as she ruled the Red Scarves. The vile woman had even planned to make Lilac the new leader that would rise up in her stead and lead the Red Scarves to a great victory. Natalya didn't just respect Lilac…she had loved her. Natalya had looked upon the purple-skinned dragon and viewed her as the daughter she never had. She wanted Lilac to be her own child and to show the world way the dragon race was so special. But now she wanted nothing more than to kill Lilac very bloodily and to make her suffer for daring to embarrass the Red Scarves and make their name an utter joke. The Scarves were still imprisoned in Shang Tu though Natalya had been planning to break them out. She had deliberately bought her time and let three whole months pass so that she would be less expected by the guards if she ever came to break the Red Scarves out of prison. Now the time was right and soon, she and Spade would be getting the gang back together.

Spade walked up to Natalya and bent down on one knee, feeling the dragon's eyes baring down on him as she observed him from the comfort of her throne.

"Good morning Natalya." Spade muttered politely, "I hope you slept well last night."

"Given my rather pleasant dreams Spade, I ALWAYS sleep well…unless my dreams have me waking up enraged or laughing manically." Natalya scowled, "But I slept well last night. And good thing too for the big day is here at last."

"We're going to break our comrades out of prison?" Spade mused quizzically.

"Yes we are my "faithful" second-in-command." Natalya announced, her voice dangerously close to sounding proud, "We're going to infiltrate Shang Tu and get the Red Scarves out of prison at last. They have been separated from us for too long my boy. It is time they were reunited with us."

"I agree." said Spade. This was one of the few times ever that he actually agreed with his abhorrent leader. "Those filthy traitors got them all captured. Time to undo their hard work."

"Indeed Spade." purred Natalya wickedly, standing up from her throne and walking towards him, "And I promise you, Lilac, Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela will all pay for their atrocities committed against the Red Scarves. Lilac and Carol told on us, the hounds aided them in their fight against me, they're all guilty and they'll all be suitably punished for their crimes. Punished…fatally that is." she crooned.

"I know." sighed Spade. He had heard the vengeful woman ranting about this a million times already. Couldn't she talk about something else for once?

"Please do not use that tone at me Spade." the woman growled menacingly, "I know you're not entirely interested but at least SOUND enthusiastic when in my presence."

"My apologies mistress." lied Spade, "So how will we break out the Red Scarves?"

Natalya's scaly face curled into a smile so wicked that it didn't seem normal or even possible for anybody of any kind to be able to emote such an expression.

"You my boy have just asked the Million Tim-Tams question." the evil dragon crowed confidently, "I had studied Shang Tu in secret for weeks and just the other night, I managed to break into the Royal Palace and steal the ground plans for the building."

She then proceeded to reach into the inside pocket of her coat and take out a folded up piece of paper. It was wrinkled in many places, suggesting it had been used a lot over many years. Spade's eyes widened. How had she managed to get those without attracting attention?

"Whoa, how did you get those?" asked Spade curiously, "And why didn't you tell me this already?"

Natalya smiled smugly and tapped her nose casually.

"That is for me to know and only me my boy." she sneered, "And I wanted you to be surprised, that's why I didn't tell you before. Now that I have the floor plans for the Royal Palace, I took it upon myself to study them carefully for anything that could help us in getting our comrades out of prison."

"And I suppose you've found a way since you tell me that today's the day we break in and free the scarves?" Spade questioned, genuinely curious to hear what his leader was going to say.

"I have." the four-horned dragon crowed as if she had just accomplished the impossible, "You know how our hideout is the Shang Tu drainage tunnels? Well, the tunnels spread so far that they even reach the Royal Palace. There is a tunnel that leads directly underneath the dungeon itself. So my plan is that we take some explosives with us, blow a hole under where the dungeon is, climb up into the dungeon and then break the Red Scarves out. The hole in the floor will be their escape route."

"What if General Gong's men follow through the hole in the floor that you blow Natalya?" asked Spade cautiously.

"Oh I already planned on that my worrisome assassin." sneered Natalya, "You know I'm a woman of meticulous planning. If those fools dare follow us, I'll set up more explosives to slow them down. And hopefully take some of them to their graves. If any survive…then they've got me to deal with. And after the Red Scarves are freed, we shall remove ourselves from our old hideout and hide somewhere else. I hear Shang Mu's drainage tunnels are equally as spacious."

"Wow, you thought of everything haven't you?" gasped Spade, disappointed that he was actually praising this she-devil.

"Given my embarrassing defeat at the hands of that filthy traitor Sash Lilac, I have been making sure that my plans don't have any flaws in them." said Natalya, "As I said before, I'm not the kind of woman who makes mistakes and never learns from them. Trying to convince that little brat to come back to the Red Scarves brought my Christmas Raid to a disastrous end…that was a mistake. And I shan't repeat it. I will not be humiliated like that ever again."

"My condolences to you mistress." lied Spade, "So…what will the Red Scarves's first mission be once they're all freed at last?"

"Oh Spade my boy…that is a good question." the dragon mused softly, her voice sounding unfitting for a woman of her character, "You know, I haven't really decided on how we could make our big comeback. I had been reading some Ancient Dragon Scrolls that I had "collected" over time and had read some of them to see if they had any secrets that a dragon like me could use to her advantage, or even some old relics that have been long forgotten that we could find. I had come across some good ideas but none that really…hit the nail on the head as one might say."

"How many scrolls have you read?"

"Fourteen."

"Is that all of them?"

"No, there's one left." replied Natalya, "Maybe before we go and rescue the scarves, I could read the last scroll, see if that gives me the perfect idea to make our comeback. An idea that'll fix my reputation and make us a feared group once again."

"Well we have all the time in the world to save the Red Scarves so you can do just that if you want." said Spade casually, "They've been incarcerated for three months, I'm sure they can wait another five minutes or more for us."

The criminal leader nodded her head agreeably. They didn't have to carry out the mission straight away. Also Natalya was the kind of woman who always liked to have a plan to carry out shortly after another. It kept her enemies on their toes and made her less predictable for they would expect her to appear sooner rather than later. Many times had Natalya stricken when they least expected it. And she would do so again after freeing the Red Scarves. She wouldn't be expected to carry out something else again so soon. The trench-coated woman strode over to a display case that contained the fifteen dragon scrolls that she had been studying in her spare time whenever she wasn't on a mission. The scrolls had all been collected and displayed in a museum in Shuigang once. For over five years, they had remained in Natalya's hands. Nobody knew she had stolen them. The scrolls were from ancient history, once written by the dragons that had inspired Avalice's three kingdoms. Being a dragon and firmly believing that dragons were the superior race, Natalya felt honoured to own such treasures from ancient history. It made her feel even more special than she already did.

Natalya grabbed the unread fifteenth scroll and blew dust off of it. The particles sprinkled down onto the floor like snowflakes in a gentle snowfall. Natalya unravelled the scroll and found herself mesmerized by the title the scroll displayed in an ancient dead language that the dragons had once spoke:

**The Dark Stone**

Intrigued, Natalya read on. The text of the scroll was accompanied by a picture of a purple spherical gem that seemed to have a murky presence behind it. The text read:

**As proud as we dragons are to be bestowing a gift as grand as the Kingdom Stone upon this beautiful world, we aren't so proud to be responsible for this dark gem. The Dark Stone is everything the Kingdom Stone isn't. Its power is evil and anybody who uses its power will experience nothing but misery and suffering. The Dark Stone plays on negative emotions and will bestow its evil magic upon those who wish to use it for whatever purpose they have in mind. Anybody who misuses this stone will find themselves becoming a dark, mindless dragon who's only desire is to destroy the entire world. There were dragons who craved darkness and destruction and thus, they had created the Dark Stone so they could achieve their dark desires. We had tried to stop the villains who had created this relic of doom…but it was too late. The Dark Stone has been created. We couldn't destroy it, no matter how hard we had tried. So we had no choice but to hide it away in a deep cave that belongs to neither of the three kingdoms made to honour our presences. And may this scroll warn those who read it to stay away from the Dark Stone. Using the Dark Stone could bring the end of your world. Please…do not let our biggest shame see the light of day.**

Natalya finished reading the scroll. Her face contorted with glee as she began to picture using the stone that she had just read about for her own nefarious purposes. The Dark Stone sounded like something she would love to use in her desire to rule over Avalice. She had to obtain it for herself. That was how the Red Scarves would make their grandiose return to crime. The dragon closed the scroll up and smiled deviously at Spade.

"Spade…this scroll has just answered your earlier question…" she purred, "After the scarves are freed, we are going to find the Dark Stone!"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, the crew of the Dreadnought were waiting with baited breath for their dark master to make his grand entrance.<p>

The crew was enormous and the Dreadnought alone was just one ship. One ship in a fleet that would reach the triple digits in numbers. There were 200 soldiers waiting for Lord Brevon in the meeting room. The room itself was considerably large, easily able to fit 100 more soldiers in if Brevon needed that many more. There was a stage where Brevon was presumably going to stand, a steel slab with a microphone that stood proudly on the stage, a high ceiling and giant speakers all around the room. The soldiers were all armed with powerful laser guns with a futuristic, hi-tech design to them. One shot from the guns would kill a man if said man was hit directly in the head, chest, neck or back by it. Any other part of the body would be horribly burnt or even torn off by the blasts. General Serpentine himself was armed with his trademark laser pistols. The crazed snake was decidedly rather trigger-happy, not that Brevon ever minded since his tendency to shoot at the enemy crazily had actually managed to cause considerable damage to the enemy in many of their conflicts. Serpentine hoped dearly that he would use his guns on Lilac and her friends. Syntax hovered above stage just beside the microphone stand as if waiting to announce her master's arrival.

There was a long silence that hung over the room. It was about to begin. The invasion of Avalice was finally going to happen. Everybody in the room was excited to hear what the lord himself was going to say when he arrived. Many minutes passed before finally, Syntax spoke.

"Good morning soldiers." she droned, "As you may know, our ship is ready for take-off. The invasion of Avalice can finally begin. And just before we begin, please welcome our honourable master…Lord Arktivus Brevon."

The crowd exploded into tumultuous applause as a door opened at the back of the stage and in strode the mighty world conqueror himself. Lord Brevon's footsteps echoed all around the room as he strode up to the microphone stand and eyed his faithful subjects. 200 evil looking soldiers all watched him curiously. Brevon was pleased at this sight. On all other ships in his fleet, there would be a sizeable amount of soldiers just like the ones he had in front of him. Avalice would not stand a chance when his fleet arrived. Brevon allowed a tense minute to pass before he finally spoke.

**"Attention troops!"** his voice boomed around the room, largely amplified by the microphone just inches away from his face, **"The big day has dawned upon us all. We have waited very patiently for this moment…and now the Day of Reckoning for those cretins who sabotaged our mission is here. Today we invade that barbaric planet called "Avalice" and we get out revenge on those insolent heathens! They destroyed my ship, tried to prevent me from making off with their precious artefact, and thus, left our home world to suffer for longer than it should have done! Now we make them pay for their needless interferences. We may not have been interested in the planet at first, but now we're going back and we're going to incinerate it! The fleet will enter the planet and destroy EVERYTHING in sight! Until finally, there's nothing left of Avalice but a smouldering field of space rocks!"**

The army cheered at their master's speech. But then Serpentine raised his hand curiously.

"Hold on master! What about that sparkly twit who stuck her nose in where it didn't belong?" he asked curiously, "May I have the honour of killing her in front of your eyes?"

**"No General."** Brevon growled, his amplified voice sounding incredibly monstrous as it boomed out of the speakers in the room, **"This is a compulsory order that you must all abide to my soldiers. Only I am allowed to kill that wretch who dared to get involved in our affairs. The purple skinned specimen with the long tendrils is MINE. If any of you dare kill her for me then you'll find yourselves missing your heads. If you capture her, she is to be brought straight to me…so that I may give her the death she deserves."**

"We'll be happy to do that for you master!" exclaimed Serpentine, secretly wishing that he was the one who was going to kill Lilac, "If I see that hideous creature, I'll throw her at your feet and leave you to do the rest my lord!"

**"Excellent General."** Brevon replied, his face a mask of devious glee, **"Now my troops, prepare for lift-off! The ship is fully operational! My fleet can ascend! The invasion of Avalice begins…NOW!"**

Overjoyed to receive their orders, Brevon's troops and Serpentine himself quickly filed out of the meeting room to carry out the launch of the Dreadnought. Brevon waited until they had all left before leaving the room himself, his huge brown cape spreading out neatly behind him as he strode away. Syntax followed him out. The two were heading to the ship's bridge to oversee the launch. Up on the bridge, Brevon had the best possible views of the outside world. He liked it that way, it meant he had a clear view on who he was shooting at. And more importantly, what planet he was about to invade and conquer.

Unbeknownst to the alien warlord or indeed anybody else on the ship, one of Brevon's soldiers took a quick look around as if making sure it hadn't been seen and that it was alone. This soldier had been at the back of the marching troops and had disappeared behind a corner as the group split up all around the ship and got to their working positions. Nobody had noticed. The soldier was alone. The soldier was in a lonely corridor with just one door to hide behind and that door was for a room that didn't see much activity for it wasn't of much use aside from storing weapons if the other rooms were full. The room was empty for everybody had a weapon in their hands. The alien soldier quickly glanced over the room just to be doubly sure that it was alone before it did something strange. The alien opened up its casing, allowing the viscous fluids to run out onto the floor. And then the alien stepped out of its armour and reached just behind its head. Its finger and thumb gripped something and began to pull it just over its head. It looked as if the alien was tearing itself in two but in actuality, it was unzipping its body. The zip was undone and the two halves fell away revealing a strikingly beautiful alien underneath. The alien was turquoise in colour with long hair that curled at the end, ravishing oval-shaped purple eyes with black eye shadow on the eyelids, a long thin singular eyelash on each eye and a curvaceous build. The alien was clearly female and was glad in purple and black body armour that looked very similar to the suit of armour that Lilac's alien friend Torque wore. The noticeable difference was that the woman's armour came with arm gauntlets that covered her lower arms and lacked a chest plate, exposing her chest and part of her cleavage. She wore a headpiece with circular pieces that sat comfortably over her ears. She looked very similar to Torque. She was the same species as the young Chaser and was part of a new crew that Torque had gathered together to try and take down Lord Brevon for good.

Torque was part of an alliance between many different worlds known as the Coalition of Planets. The members of the group were often referred to as "Chasers" and the alien girl who had slipped out of her disguise was one of them. Now completely out of her disguise, the woman took out from her mouth a breathing apparatus that she had been using to breathe in the armour while it had been full of fluids and dropped it inside the armour. She sat down in a corner of the room and she switched on her comlink. She waited for a moment until finally, her commander answered her call.

"Hello?" came Torque's voice on the other side of her comlink. His voice rang softly in her ears through the ear pieces on her headwear.

"Torque, it's me Terra." the girl responded, "I've got a status report for you commander."

"Is Lord Brevon making his move?" the Chaser asked nervously.

"Unfortunately…yes." Terra replied, "He's finally got his Dreadnought ship operational and now his fleet's getting ready to take off."

"Can you stop the ship from taking off?" Torque asked hopefully.

"Sorry. No can do Commander Torque." said Terra grimly, "I'm worried I'll blow my cover if I try. Brevon's leaving nothing to chance. He's had his ships thoroughly searched about fifty million times already. It's like he's expecting me to plant a bomb somewhere on the ship and thus, it's too risky for me to plant any explosives."

"I'm sorry to hear this Terra." mused Torque, "Still, you've done your job excellently Lieutenant. Well done on your great work. Thanks to you, we know what Brevon's planning and we can prepare ourselves for his arrival. Is he planning to come to Avalice?"

"He honestly couldn't make it more obvious Torque." sneered Terra, "We all know it's because of that world he's a laughing stock. It would be strange if he DIDN'T plan on going to Avalice."

"I knew his next plan would involve my friends and their world…" the green-skinned alien murmured worriedly, "Lilac, Carol and Milla did beat him after all. Mostly Lilac though but still. I was hoping we'd catch him before he could even plot to do such a thing. Just remain where you are Terra and do NOT make a move until the fighting begins. Is that understood?"

"Loud and clear commander." replied Terra, "Please Torque…don't worry about me. You know me, I'm the Coalition of Planets' best spy. I've NEVER been caught. Brevon's band of sci-fi monsters won't ever catch me here."

"I know but…just…please understand that given the loss of my previous crew, I can't bear to lose another one." the Chaser replied, his voice carrying a heavy tone of concern, "Especially you Lieutenant. You're my best friend. I don't wanna lose you."

"I understand fully Torque. And I promise to be careful for you and the rest of our crew commander." said Terra, her voice full of sympathy, "You have my word that I'll be fine."

"Thanks. I appreciate it Terra." Torque replied softly.

"Anytime buddy." said Terra brightfully, "So what's the plan?"

"I'll get my crew to form a blockade around Avalice. I'll bring the whole crew and we'll bring our biggest, strongest and most heavily armed ships we have." explained Torque, " We'll lie in wait for Brevon and when his fleet arrives…we'll blow it sky high. And given we've managed to duplicate some of Brevon's technology, we may have an advantage."

"Sweet! Does this mean you're gonna bring that badass mech into the fight?!" Terra piped excitedly.

"Yes, it is time for the battle mech to see its first fight." Torque insisted, his voice carrying some glee in his words, "Brevon's gonna be shocked to see us using his own tech against him."

"Hell yeah!" cried Terra enthusiastically, "That demon deserves a good shock from us for all he's done!"

"Indeed Terra." mused Torque, "Today…Lord Brevon's tyranny comes to an end. He is not getting to Avalice, neither he nor his fleet. My friends don't deserve to suffer his tyranny again."

"Given what you've told me about the atrocities he committed on that planet…I'm inclined to agree." the female Chaser nodded, "Especially after he tortured an innocent civilian horribly in front of your eyes. This "Lilac" woman you speak highly of can do without the reminders."

"I'm sure she'd appreciate your sympathy." Torque beamed, "This conversation is over. I must get my fleet prepared to go to Avalice. With any luck, we'll be there before Brevon. Stay where you are and the moment the fighting begins, get yourself outta there."

"Understood. Over and out." replied Terra.

She switched off her comlink and breathed in deeply. She let it out again in a slow, relaxed sigh. Being the best infiltrator the Coalition of Planets had ever recruited, she was very confident in her beliefs that she wouldn't be caught. She had sneaked in and out of many enemy ships and bases and had always made it out unnoticed. Terra didn't need to worry about Brevon finding out he had an intruder on the ship. She had been spying on Brevon for over two months and he still hadn't suspected he had a spy on his ship. Even now, he was still completely in the dark. Terra smiled to herself, pleased to think that she had actually successfully infiltrated Brevon's ship and exposed his big invasion scheme to her best friend. The only worrying thought for her at this moment was if Torque's fleet would get to Avalice first. If Brevon won the race then they would have to attack the fleet on Avalice if necessary. But Terra knew that The Chasers would much rather keep any collateral damage to strictly outside the planet's atmosphere if possible. And hopefully, that was what was going to happen…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Talk about a double dose of villainous activities! Brevon's coming to Avalice and Natalya's planning to free the Red Scarves! Will either plan work? I dunno, let's find out next time shall we?<strong>_


	3. Chapter 2: Prison Break

_Chapter 2: Prison Break_

The Royal Palace of Shang Tu was in for another slow, maybe even lazy day down in the dungeons again. Morning had dawned bright and sunny over the luxurious kingdom and everybody was beginning to wake up, eager to face the day that promised them so many new things that could be happening.

The Royal Palace was home to the ruler of Shang Tu. He was known as the Royal Magister and he was often cited as being the most mysterious Avalician in the entire kingdom, maybe even the world. Part of this was because he never showed his face. Only his cold, hard, violet eyes were visible with the rest of his face shrouded in black. A mask perhaps? Not even his most trusted subjects knew what he really looked like. They supposed The Magister wanted to look mysterious and thus, they never commented or asked about why he seemed so determined to keep his face a mystery. Maybe if he slipped out into town at all in a different outfit and his face unveiled, nobody would know it was him and he would be able to roam amongst the common people without attracting attention to them or any assassin hoping to take his life. With Natalya and Spade still on the loose, secrecy was The Magister's best way of making sure they never got him. And so far, it seemed to have worked. Ever since The Christmas Raid had been foiled, there had been no more attempts on his life. Despite this, The Magister knew that alertness was paramount if he was to keep his head on his shoulders. Not a day passed where he wasn't being careful and keeping an eye on his subjects to make sure there was no veiled threat waiting to ruin the peace of his kingdom. The Magister was a man who never left anything to chance.

As the morning grew brighter, a big bulky panda stretched and yawned as he strode towards the dungeon, ready to begin the morning shift. His name was General Gong and he was the strongest warrior in all of Shang Tu. With help from Lilac and her friends, he had managed to ambush the Red Scarves in their own hideout and arrest nearly all of the Red Scarves. Only Natalya and Spade were left but he was determined to put them behind bars eventually. As of now, he was in charge of guarding the Red Scarves that were all locked up in the various cells the dungeon housed under the palace itself. The ninjas that had once been united with their leader as a big group of assassins and thieves were all bored. They spent all their days locked up in these cells, never to taste freedom again. They were too dangerous to release, even for a minute so they had to remain locked up for everybody's own safety. Gong liked to imagine that there would be a time where Natalya and Spade were finally in a cell of their own and sharing the boredom that the ninjas were all experiencing now. As the general entered the dungeons, the Red Scarves all got to their feet and pressed themselves against the bars of their cells.

"Hey fatso! Open up this cell!" barked one of the ninjas in a gruff voice.

"We're bored out of our minds here! Let us outta here!" moaned another ninja.

"If you don't let us go now, Natalya will kick your butt!" cried a third ninja."

"Do you scoundrels EVER shut up?!" bellowed Gong angrily, "Seriously, I've heard it all the last hundred times I've come down here! Give it a rest already!"

"We'll give it a rest when you finally cede to our demands!" snapped a fourth ninja, "You can't keep us locked up like wild animals! You have any idea how inhumane this is?!"

"You scum are ones to talk about "Inhumane"." snarled General Gong, angered at the sheer hypocrisy of the ninja's words, "You filthy criminals are nothing but thieves and assassins! You're the antithesis of "inhumane" so don't you dare tell ME about being inhumane!"

He then proceeded to draw out his trademark large shield and bang it against the bars of the ninja's cell to make him back off. The ninja did back off but the other ninjas seemed rather entertained by Gong banging their cell bars.

"Do that again General Tubby! Maybe you'll "accidentally" break our door down and free us!" sneered one of the ninjas mockingly.

"Nice try but you're not fooling me that easily." the panda muttered, "Now you ninjas better pipe down or neither of you are getting any breakfast this morning!"

"Don't care, the food's horrible in this place anyway." sniffed another ninja in another cell.

"Fine then I guess you all wanna starve to death." scoffed Gong, "I'll tell our cooks to stop saving you any food from now on if that's how it's gonna be. Bye-bye!"

The grizzly-voiced panda turned on his heels and was about to leave the dungeon for he felt that he had spent enough time with the prisoners and didn't need to be there any longer. He hated having to come down to the dungeons every morning, afternoon and evening just to check up on the Red Scarves. They never had anything good to say to him and they always moaned about how boring their cells were. Gong would much rather be spending his time focusing on other matters than a few ninjas locked up in a row of cells.

But then very quickly and very unexpectedly, Gong ended up having a matter other than the locked up Red Scarves to focus on. Just as he opened the dungeon door and prepared to let himself out, a sudden loud noise blasted through the room and made the heavyweight panda jump about a foot in the air in surprise. He turned around and saw that much to his surprise, there was a giant hole in the floor, precisely in the centre of the dungeon. Bits of concrete showered down to the bottom of the hole that had mysteriously appeared in the floor. It was as if somebody had just dropped a bomb in the dungeon and it had gone off. But how?! The Red Scarves looked equally as bewildered about the whole thing as General Gong did. Gong ran over to the hole and inspected it. How had this happened? Who had done this? His jaw dropped and his eyes widened as he saw just exactly who was responsible for it. Looking up at him with a smug smile, was Natalya the Lead Scarf herself! She was accompanied by Spade the Panda, whom Gong knew very well as the criminal brother of Shuigang's very own King Dail and a loyal member of the Red Scarves. Gong didn't care about Spade though, his eyes were fixed firmly on Natalya. She was the primary threat. She had to be taken down more than anybody.

The four-horned dragon then suddenly threw her arms up and leapt into the air towards the hole that she and Spade had blown in the ceiling above. Gong quickly raised his shield but it didn't do him a bit of good. Natalya's booted foot slammed down hard on the shield and threw Gong off his feet. To the panda, he felt like he had been trying to protect himself from a giant hammer. As Gong landed on his feet, Natalya allowed the pleasure of a triumphant cackle before folding her arms and smiling confidently at the general.

"Morning general. I do hope I didn't cause too much of a ruckus." the dragon purred wickedly.

"MISTRESS NATALYA!" the Red Scarves exploded in a chorus of excited gasps and cheers.

"Greetings my disciples. I'm ever so sorry I've taken so long to rescue you all." said Natalya, "I thought that buying my time would make my rescue attempt less predictable. Well your glorious leader is here now to get you all free from your incarceration!"

"You want to get the scarves out?" growled Gong furiously, "You'll have to get through me first!"

"Oh don't waste my time you walking barrel of fat." snarled Natalya, "You and I both know that you cannot beat me. Why waste your time on an impossible task? Just let me carry on with my merry task and you won't have to needlessly get hurt."

"And get kicked out of the palace by The Magister?! You're insane if you think I'm gonna comply to that bone-headed order!" declared General Gong, "You're not rescuing the scarves without a fight! So put em up!"

Before any fighting could commence, Gong found himself getting a surprising back-up in the fight. The door swung open and in burst Shang Tu's Royal Priestess, the beautiful Neera Li. Neera Li was an elegant panda with an elegant uniform and an Ice Sceptre that made her a formidable opponent to anybody daring to fight her. She had been from Shuigang but had left to join the Royal Magister in hopes of bringing the brainwashed Prince Dail down to earth during Brevon's invasion last year. Despite Dail being normal again, Neera had opted to stay in Shang Tu, feeling that she belonged there more than in Shuigang. The priestess had come down to the dungeons to see if Gong needed any help with anything and was horrified to see that Natalya had broken in and was about to fight the general. The crime boss hadn't been seen in three whole months after she had miraculously disappeared from sight before Neera could arrest her. The panda hadn't thought she'd ever see Natalya again but now that thought had been dispelled right in front of her.

"Natalya?!" Neera screamed in horror.

"Hello Neera. Still looking as lovely as ever." the crime mistress purred, "Not for long though…I'm giving you one chance. Leave this place and you get to keep your life. If you refuse then you can join Gong in a quick and violent death."

The priestess's hands clenched tighter around her sceptre. Never in her life had she ever backed down from a threat directed at her or the people of Shang Tu. And today would be no different.

"I'll see you in hell before I ever do what you tell me to do." Li growled angrily, "Now I remember how Sash Lilac had beaten you to a pulp and I was going to arrest you. You disappeared before I could throw you in this dungeon. Now you're here, allow me to show you which cell you'll be occupying."

Natalya just laughed. As she laughed, Neera could feel the confidence radiating in the vile woman's body. She was the type of person who wouldn't back down from any challenge, no matter how challenging it was.

"Such a wondrous offer you flaccid minded fool!" jeered Natalya, "But I'm afraid I have to decline. I don't intend to stay. I've got my men to free and then I'm going hunting for a very powerful relic to mark our comeback to crime and villainy."

"What sort of relic are you hunting for?" asked Gong nervously.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" scoffed Natalya, "Now one last chance. Leave here and let me carry out my work. And I might be tempted to spare your useless lives."

The two pandas didn't budge, just as the dragon had predicted. Natalya's scaly face curled into a hard core scowl of annoyance as her enemies dropped into battle ready stances. Had they forgotten what had happened last year when they dared to fight her? She supposed that they needed some reminders.

"So be it…" snarled Natalya.

With a flick of her wrist, a dagger had appeared in her hand, seemingly from nowhere. Spade, who had been watching with total silence, never could understand how his boss had been able to learn that trick. He'd tried with his cards countless times but never quite got it down as well as Natalya had.

The dragon raised the dagger and proceeded to throw it at the general and priestess. Gong was quick to block the attack with his shield as Neera somersaulted over him and fired beams of ice towards her vile opponent. Natalya back flipped away from the beams, somehow managing to clear the entire hole she had just been standing in front of. The Red Scarves were captivated at the scene before them. Their boss was fighting for their freedom. And they knew full well that she would win the fight easily. As Natalya landed on the other side of the hole, Neera pounced towards her with her sceptre aimed at the evil woman. Natalya just flicked her other wrist and just like magic, another dagger had appeared in her hand. She threw it at Neera as if throwing a dart at a dartboard. The dagger sliced just atop the panda's shoulder, stopping her pounce mid-flight and bringing her falling down into the hole just beneath her. The stink of the drainage tunnels tickled her nose as she landed in some dirty sewage water with a mighty splash. Neera Li lay in the water, ignoring the foul smell around her as she looked at her wounded shoulder. The dagger had left a deep cut across it, blood trickling down from the fresh cut. The pain was agonizing but Neera knew that she couldn't let it bring her down. She allowed herself to rest for a moment before getting back into the fight. She watched from down below as Natalya sprang into the air and sailed over the hole. Hopefully General Gong would fare better then she currently was…

* * *

><p>Over at Lilac's treehouse, the occupants of the well-constructed habitat were having a considerably nicer morning than Shang Tu was currently having.<p>

Despite last night's nightmare, Lilac had woken up in a rather cheerful mood. She supposed that Carol had helped with that. Gone were the worries of meeting either Natalya or Brevon again, and so were the worries of having to deal with both of them at once. She only had one thought on her mind as she sat down to join her friends for breakfast. And that thought was what a good day she was going to have. The dragon girl's face brightened like the morning sun itself as she sat down at the dinner table with her friends. There was Carol the Wildcat of course and with her were the Basset family.

The family consisted of two parents and their ten-year old daughter. Lilac and Carol had befriended the daughter during Brevon's crimes against Avalice last year. Her name was Milla and she was as sweet and innocent as any puppy could possibly get. When Lilac had met her that day, Milla's first act was to request the dragon's permission to touch her hair. Surprisingly, this had ended up blossoming into a friendship almost as close as Lilac's friendship with Carol. Lilac saw Milla as the cute little sister that she never had. Milla saw Lilac in the same light. Because of this, Lilac was very protective of the little puppy. After Lord Brevon had turned her into a horrible monster in an attempt to slow her down so he could take off, Lilac vowed never to let anything or anyone harm Milla again. The events Natalya's Christmas Raid had just made Lilac even more determined not to let Milla get hurt again and thankfully, the last three months had granted that wish. Hopefully many more months would grant that wish too.

Milla's parents were Miguel and Lela Basset. They were kind and devoted parents who loved Milla more than life itself. If given the choice, they would pick their own daughter over their own lives. They had sadly gone missing a few months before Brevon crash-landed on Avalice and poor Milla had been alone in the woods ever since, until she had met Lilac and Carol that is. Miguel and Lela's disappearance had been the fault of Natalya the Lead Scarf. She had kidnapped them and forced them to join the Red Scarves. But thanks to Lilac, Carol and Milla, they had been freed from the woman's iron grip and reunited with their beloved daughter. So Milla could remain with her friends though, they had willingly chosen to move into Lilac's treehouse and live with the three girls. It had been strange for Lilac and Carol at first but they had gotten used to it. Miguel and Lela had been quite useful around the house and had done a good job on making the meals whenever they felt like cooking.

This morning, they had made breakfast and Lilac could hardly wait to dig in. Breakfast this morning was a stack of homemade waffles drenched in maple syrup, each stack containing four waffles for each Avalician. Lilac, Carol and Milla had orange juice to drink with their waffles while Miguel and Lela had a mug of hot chocolate each. Unlike most adults, they rarely ever drank tea of any kind and absolutely hated coffee. Hot chocolate was their much preferred beverage. Lilac picked up her knife and fork and began cutting off a piece of her first waffle. She then brought the fork to her mouth and popped the waffle chunk into it. The taste was amazing. Lilac allowed herself to chew it very slowly for a few precious seconds before swallowing.

"Mmmm, boy you two make the best waffles ever!" Lilac exclaimed, a little louder than she should have done.

"Thank you very much dearie." said Lela appreciatively, "In the Basset household, waffles was always a favourite of ours at breakfast so that might explain why we cook them so well."

"I'll say." agreed Carol, her mouth full of waffle as she spoke, "These waffles are great!"

"Don't speak with your mouth full Carol." said Miguel sternly, "Do you realize how impolite that is?"

Carol just swallowed what was in her mouth and said nothing. She began cutting into her next waffle, making sure to avoid the male hound's eye. She didn't have any beef against Milla's parents but there were times where she felt they were getting a bit too over-parenting towards not just Milla, but her and Lilac too as if they had legitimately become their parents and were now responsible for them. Carol didn't enjoy that feeling and hoped that it wouldn't last. Milla swallowed her mouthful of waffle and glanced over at Lilac as the dragon was eating her next piece of her first waffle.

"How are you this morning Lilac?" she asked politely.

Lilac swallowed before answering.

"I'm great Milla. Thanks for asking." the dragon replied "How are you Milla? Did you sleep well last night?"

"Oh yes, thank you." Milla replied sweetly, "I slept like a log last night. I also had a funny dream too. Last night, I dreamt that I was eating an enormous ice cream! It was a very delicious ice-cream too! It was chocolate ice-cream with chocolate brownie pieces and chocolate sauce on it!"

"Sounds like a lovely ice-cream Milla." chortled Lilac.

"Yeah, I bet you woke up wetting the bed…with your drool." snickered Carol.

"I did actually." Milla giggled, "I suddenly woke up and found that I had drooled all over my pillow. Mommy always said to me that dreams have a funny effect on you."

"You're right about that Milla." said Carol, nodding at the dog, "Sometimes I have a dream where I'm falling. And then I wake up and instead of my bed, I'm on the floor!"

The entire table exploded with laughter.

"That's partially why Carol never sleeps on the top bunk anymore." giggled Lilac, "And yet she still manages to fall out of bed at times!"

"Least when I fall out of the bottom bunk, I don't give myself a killing back-ache or a broken arm." muttered Carol, shoving another piece of waffle into her mouth.

"Did you have a dream last night Lilac?" asked Milla curiously.

Lilac suddenly froze as if Milla had just asked her a serious question like "Am I going to die?". Her fork, with the last piece of her first waffle hovered just inches from her mouth until she lowered it down onto her plate. She had quite suddenly lost her appetite. Asking that question had brought back the terrible nightmare the dragon had received last night. Her happy mood had evaporated like a puddle on a hot sunny day. Carol caught sight of her friend's dismay and knew instantly that Milla had asked the wrong question. She leaned towards the dog and whispered into her ear.

"She had a nightmare about Brevon again Milla. You've just reminded her of it by asking that question."

Milla put a hand to her mouth in shock.

"Oh Lilac, I'm so sorry!" the dog gasped, "Please don't be upset, I didn't mean to make you sad! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"No Milla, it's OK." Lilac insisted, seeming to brighten up a bit, "You weren't to know. Anyway, let's forget about all it and focus on something else. Like what we're gonna do today."

"How's about I take you all on a bike ride?" suggested Carol, already forgetting about Lilac remembering last night's nightmare, "I assure you, it'll be fun."

"I always did enjoy motorcycling Miss Tea." said Miguel brightly, "I'm up for that."

"I'll give it a go I suppose." said Lela, looking unsure about the idea.

"It's gonna be fun!" squealed Milla, "I'd love to have a motorbike ride!"

"Well I think we've got this morning's routine sorted out." Lilac beamed, "And maybe at lunchtime, I could prepare us a picnic and we could set it up in Relic Maze…"

The conversation was rudely interrupted by the sound of a telephone ringing. The sound had come so suddenly that everybody leaped up in their seats. Carol, who had a mouth full of waffle, nearly choked on what she was eating in alarm. Lilac quickly ran out of the room in order to answer the phone. She didn't get many phone calls and when she did, they weren't usually accompanied by good news. The dragon picked up the phone and held the receiver close to her ear.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Lilac. This is the Royal Magister." came a deep, commanding voice from the other side of the phone, "There is an emergency at the Royal Palace. Natalya has broken into the dungeons and is engaged in combat with Neera and the general. Your assistance in the matter is greatly required."

The dragon was so shocked at the news that she dropped the receiver on the floor. She placed a hand over her chest absent-mindedly as if making sure she wasn't having a heart-attack. Her heart seemed OK so she stopped feeling her pulse. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Natalya had finally come out of hiding and was now attacking the Royal Palace?! The fact she was in the dungeons told Lilac everything she needed to know. Her former crime boss was trying to free the Red Scarves. As a former member of the group, Lilac had hoped they'd never walk freely again. But now Natalya was on the scene, it was unlikely the Red Scarves would stay locked up now. She had to get involved and stop Natalya before it was too late. She then snapped out of her thoughts and realized she'd dropped the receiver. She picked it back up and spoke into it again.

"I'll be right there Magister. Me and all my friends." Lilac promised.

She hung up and ran back into the dining room. Carol and Milla caught sight of the scaly Avalician's horrified face and knew instantly that she hadn't received good news in that phone call.

"We've gotta get to Shang Tu now!" Lilac exclaimed wildly, "Natalya's trying to break the Red Scarves out of prison!"

"No!" cried Carol, her face full of horror, "Oh no! We can't let that witch do this!"

"We've gotta stop her!" piped Milla, "That nasty woman can't get the Red Scarves out of prison!"

"You Milla are not going anywhere near that demon!" Miguel blustered, "I refuse to let you face that horrible woman again!"

"But daddy, I can help Lilac and Carol!" protested Milla, "They'll need my shield abilities to defend them from her attacks! I must go with them!"

"But Natalya might kill you Milla!" gasped Lela, embracing her beloved daughter as if she was never going to see her again, "I can't bear the thought of losing you to her!"

"Don't worry Mr. and Mrs. Basset, Milla will be fine." Lilac insisted, "I'll protect her. And so will Carol too. Besides, I beat Natalya remember? I'll do it again this time. You needn't worry about her."

The parents looked as if they were about to argue some more. But lo and behold, they knew that Lilac was right. There was no need to worry about Milla if she was in the dragon's care. And Lilac had indeed beaten Natalya last Christmas. What was there to worry about? They both sighed in unison and Miguel spoke.

"Alright then. But if Milla's going, we're going too." he replied, "That way Milla has her friends and family to look after her."

"Sure." said Lilac casually, "Besides, you have scores to settle with that woman. You'll get the chance to beat her up as well."

"And with Team Lilac on yer back, you've got a bigger chance of winning!" Carol cheered.

"Pfft, you still haven't got a better team name for us Carol?" the dragon snorted.

"I tried before. Couldn't think of a better name." Carol smiled sheepishly.

"Never mind. Let's get over to Shang Tu and get a cell arranged for Natalya!" Lilac cried out enthusiastically.

"That is a very lovely thought." Miguel said with a smile on his face.

After what Natalya had done to him and Lela, he would give his all if it meant seeing the evil dragon behind bars at last. With no time to finish off their breakfast, the Avalicians got up to their feet and prepared to go to Shang Tu. As the mission was about to begin, Lilac allowed her thoughts to run wild for a brief moment. Natalya was finally active again and she was now about to face her former mistress for a third time. One of her fears last night had been meeting her again. Would it just be Natalya? Would she meet Brevon as well today? The dragon girl dismissed the thought as quickly as she had thought of it. There was no chance of Lord Brevon showing up today. It was just Natalya and that was it. Nobody more and nobody less. She shoved any thoughts of Brevon out of her brain as she exited her treehouse and lead the way to Shang Tu with her friends close behind her. Only Natalya was on her mind now. And the most nerve-racking thought about Natalya on Lilac's mind was this: would she stop Natalya from getting away with the Red Scarves? And would she get her thrown into a cell at last…?

* * *

><p>General Gong let out another grunt of pain as he was catapulted across the room and sent crashing into the dungeon door. He crashed so heavily into the door that it was torn straight off of its hinges. Natalya dusted off her hands and smirked at the panda as he lay on his back, the door reduced to splinters of wood and spread out beneath him. The crime mistress laughed as Gong forced himself back onto his feet. Bits of broken door that had stuck to his back fell onto the floor as he got up. Natalya was on top of the battle so far. Neither General Gong, nor Neera Li could seem to land a blow on her and every blow that Natalya landed on the two pandas seemed to get harder, heavier and more callous as the fight went on.<p>

"Come on general, I'm not even TRYING here!" crowed Natalya, "You put up a better fight against me last year and even then I still floored you!"

"Gloat all you want you creep…you won't be gloating for long when I throw you into a cell along with your buddies here!" snarled Gong.

He picked up his shield and threw it straight towards Natalya like a giant metal Frisbee. The dragon sighed. Why couldn't she fight somebody who wasn't so predictable? And for that matter, why did her opponents never get the idea that trying the same tactic over and over never works? If it didn't work the first time then it won't work the second or third time they try it! Natalya somersaulted effortlessly over the sailing shield, leaving it to slice through air that had just seconds ago been occupied by her. The shield slammed into the wall at the end of the room. It had hit the wall so hard that it had even embedded itself into it. Natalya landed down on the floor again and she propelled herself towards General Gong like a charging rhino. That proved to be the first mistake she had made in the fight for Gong drew his arm back and threw a terrifically well-aimed punch straight into the dragon's face. Natalya's head snapped backwards and she found herself reeling from the punch. She knew that Gong had a lot of power in him and that she couldn't let him hit her like that again or the odds could become even…and then become the odds again with Gong on top and Natalya below. The woman rubbed her throbbing face better.

"Well done, you actually managed to **hit** me." Natalya sneered, "I'm impressed."

"You're too kind." snorted Gong sarcastically.

The panda lumbered towards Natalya, hoping that the punch landed directly on his opponent's face earlier had stunned the woman long enough for him to punch her again. But that had been wishful thinking for the general. As Gong prepared to punch Natalya again, the martial artist suddenly lashed out with a savage jab to the shoulder on Gong. Her attack had been well aimed. Gong wore spiked shoulder pads but they only covered part of his shoulders. Natalya had hit him just under his left shoulder pad, very close to his collar bone. The jab numbed Gong's entire arm and had the panda cringing in pain. As the general took a moment to rub himself better and try to get the feeling back in his arm, Natalya spun around on her heels and drove her left foot directly into the panda's cheek. The kick sent Gong reeling backwards, spinning dizzily on his feet as he crashed into a wall.

Neera somersaulted through the air and landed just behind Natalya. She had climbed back out of the hole earlier but hadn't gotten back into the fight much. She decided to fix that. The priestess pointed her sceptre at the dragon, hoping to finally hit her and freeze her solid. That was her primary tactic when trying to catch a criminal. Unfortunately, Spade had decided to interfere. As much as it annoyed him having to help Natalya, he wanted the Red Scarves freed as well. How could he overthrow his boss without them? And he wouldn't be running the Red Scarves if he had no ninjas to rule over. Spade drew an Ace of Spades card out of nowhere and threw it at Neera. The card sliced just over Neera's wound from Natalya's dagger attack earlier. The panda screamed in agony as her already throbbing cut flared up in anguish. The scream caught Natalya's attention and she turned around to see that Neera had attempted to attack her from behind. She smiled at Spade, pleased that he had been so helpful. Natalya then rocketed towards Neera at a speed that defied all belief. Only a dragon could ever go at speeds like this. Neera didn't even know what had happened as Natalya's arm scythed through the air and knocked the wind out of her with a heavy slam to the gut.

Neera doubled over in pain, trying to get the breath back into her body as Natalya positioned herself just behind the she-panda. She drew out another dagger that she had somehow managed to conceal up her sleeve and she aimed a killing strike at Neera's back. But before the blow could come, Neera kicked out behind her, hitting the woman squarely in the knee. Even a woman who was tolerant of most forms of pain had areas more sensitive than others. Natalya winced slightly as a spasm of pain shot through her knee but it was more than enough for Neera to pick up her sceptre and wallop her around the head with it. Natalya stumbled sideways and hit a nearby cell door, slumping against the bars and startling the imprisoned ninjas. Neera seemed to hit hard when she actually managed to land a blow on her opponent. Natalya knew that a blow like that would surely bring the battle in Neera's favour, maybe even make her the winner so for the rest of the battle, she was going to make sure the impudent girl never hit her in the head again. Neera pointed her sceptre at Natalya, intending to freeze the woman and finish the fight in her favour. Natalya remained where she was, staring at the sceptre as if Neera was about to stab her with it.

"Don't move otherwise things will get VERY cold for you!" snarled Neera, "Stand down and I'll spare you the displeasure of being frozen!"

"Very well, I concede." sighed Natalya, "You've actually beaten me it seems."

"I guess Lilac scoring a victory over you has damaged your battle prowess." crowed Neera.

"If that little brat was here right now, I'd have her guts for garters." the villainess scowled angrily.

"How will you manage that when you're behind bars?" Li sneered.

"Because I'm not behind them yet." scoffed Natalya, "And Spade's gonna make sure that isn't going to happen."

Before Neera realized what was happening, Spade charged straight into her and wrapped his arms directly around her torso. The ram had been so hard and surprising that Neera had dropped her sceptre. Spade didn't stop right there though. He carried Neera away from Natalya and threw her down into the hole again. The priestess sighed in annoyance as she found herself crashing down into smelly sewage waste again. She was certain that she would need a lot of baths in order to get rid of the smell for good. Gong picked himself up and tried to get back into the fight but Spade and Natalya both charged into him at once, knocking him down onto his back. The dragon then finished the fight once and for all by giving Gong a nerve pinch on the shoulder. The panda's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he passed out from the pinch. Neera, covered in sewage waste and smelling absolutely rancid, climbed out of the hole just in time to see Gong pass out. Enraged, she fired beams of ice at the dragon and panda but both Red Scarves dodged the attack and ran towards Neera. Li somersaulted into the air just over Natalya and Spade before they could attack her and she clubbed both villains across the backs with her ice sceptre. Natalya withstood the blow whereas Spade was knocked off his feet by the attack. Neera was about to freeze Spade but Natalya quickly retaliated and nerve pinched the priestess on the shoulder. The girl's mouth dropped open as if trying to say something but then Neera collapsed onto the floor. Natalya smirked like a witch from a child's book at her victory.

"All too easy…" she gloated, "Spade, break those doors open and we can get out of here at last."

"Certainly mistress." said Spade, still using the faux polite tone that he had decided to keep using when speaking to Natalya. The less she suspected about his true motives, the better. "Though Natalya, riddle me this. You love dragons right? You think they're the superior race right? So…"

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"…why do you wanna find the Dark Stone? Didn't that scroll say that the stone turns you into a dark dragon who's only desire is to destroy everything?" he finished.

"Yes, I did read the scroll you know." snorted Natalya, "And I am not going to use the stone to become that kind of dragon. I intend to use a little of its power to make myself stronger than before. I intend to practice with it of course to make sure I've got it under control and I won't become that kind of dragon. If I look as if I'm losing control Spade, you MUST swipe the stone from my hands. Is that understood?"

Spade nodded. Not that he was concerned for his boss's safety, but because he didn't want Natalya to lose control either. He couldn't be the new leader of the Red Scarves if the world was destroyed and unlike many people, Spade wasn't interested in wanton destruction. He was many things but genocidal was not one of those things.

"Good." Natalya muttered, "Now then, the scarves."

Spade was onto it right away. He drew a couple of cards out of nowhere and ran over to the first cell door. He slotted the card, a Queen of Diamonds, between the door and frame and slashed down at the lock. The card was sharp enough to slice through titanium so the cell door was hardly going to put up a good fight against it. The lock was sliced in two instantly and the door burst open. The incarcerate ninjas quickly piled out of the door and ran straight towards the hole in the floor. They were finally free at last. They were keen to get away from the Royal Palace before Neera and Gong woke up and tried to stop them. Spade repeated the process for the rest of the cells before finally, all the Red Scarves were freed. The ninjas all piled down into the hole, glad to be tasting freedom once again. No longer were they prisoners of the Royal Magister, they were free to commit their beloved crimes and maybe even strike back at the Magister for getting them all caught last year. As the Red Scarves filed into the sewage tunnels, Natalya barked at them.

"We're not returning to our old hideout my disciples! Remember how it's been compromised thanks to the Red Scarf traitors Lilac and Carol? We're moving to Shang Mu's drainage tunnels for our new hideout!"

The Red Scarves understood. There was no logic behind returning to a hideout that had once been secret but was no longer one thanks to Lilac and Carol disclosing its location to the Magister. Shang Mu would be a good hiding place for the Red Scarves to set up their new hiding place. Shang Mu's drainage tunnels were just as spacious as Shang Tu's were. Given that Shang Mu was larger than Shang Tu, the kingdom's drainage tunnels might even be larger. Nobody would ever find the Red Scarves in them when they arrived at Shang Mu's underground sewage network. Now they knew where to go, the Red Scarves headed on into the Shang Tu drainage tunnels. They intended to reach the surface through the tunnels and then they would make their way over to Shang Mu to set up their new home. Natalya waited until the Red Scarves had left before preparing to follow them down.

"NATALYA!"

The scream had come from nowhere. Natalya was so surprised at hearing her own name being yelled at her like that for a moment, she was frozen in alarm. But she quickly shook it off. Part of her vigorous training that had made her the powerhouse she was included being able to shake off surprises very quickly. The dragon looked over her shoulder and saw the one Avalician that she had been hoping to meet again glaring at her from the dungeon doorway. It was Lilac the Dragon Girl. Her face was full of hatred as she found herself staring at the hate-filled eyes of her former boss. To Natalya's delight, Carol and the Basset family were there too. Maybe she could kill them along with Lilac. Natalya smiled grimly at her former best student.

"Sash Lilac." she purred, her voice almost seductive in tone as she spoke, "It's been a while. I was beginning to wonder if we'd ever see each other again."

"I was hoping that we WOULDN'T see each other again." Lilac snarled, her face the embodiment of fury, "Now you can stop what you're doing before I beat the crap out of you again Natalya!"

"Yeah your royal bitchiness, don't give Lilac an excuse to deck ya like ya did last year!" sneered Carol, "Don't wanna lose to my best friend again do ya?"

"Please don't talk Carol, this is between dragons ONLY." scoffed Natalya, her eyes refusing to even glance in the wildcat's direction, "Anyway Lilac, I would love to stay and slit your throat but I'm afraid now is not the time. I have a job to do and I'd rather not be late."

"What job is that?" asked Milla.

"A none-of-your-business kind of job." retorted Natalya, "Just know that once the Red Scarves have set up camp in their new hideout, we're going to commence with a mission that'll change the world."

"The only thing that's changing around here is you being free!" snapped Lilac, "You're going in a cell and you're gonna stay in that cell until you rot you monster! And then once you're locked up, Spade can share a cell with you and then the Red Scarves will be put back where they belong!"

"If I'm to be locked up, can I have my own cell instead of sharing one with Natalya?" Spade muttered grimly, repulsed at such a thought.

"Well Lilac, I'm rather appalled to hear such talk from you." said Natalya darkly, "Is this anyway to treat your former leader?"

"You're not the boss of me anymore Natalya! And you never will be ever again!" shouted Lilac, "Now for the last time, cease your vile crimes and you can save yourself a dragon-style pounding!"

"You forget my child, you're talking to the genuine article." snapped Natalya, "You won't get far giving an actual dragon a dragon-style pounding. Especially since you are NOT a dragon. You're a Nothing Lilac. A filthy Nothing and getting rid of you will make me the happiest dragon in the world."

"And then Avalice will live life forever cursing the proud name of the dragon race…" muttered Lilac, "If you won't stand down Natalya then I'll have to knock you down!"

"Good luck with that you little brat…" the criminal gang leader growled menacingly.

Natalya looked as if she was about to fight. She bent down in a battle-ready stance, looking as if she was about to charge at Lilac and slash her violently across the face with her claws. Lilac bent down in a battle-ready stance too, ready to boost straight into her opponent's stomach and heavily wind her. But then something strange happened. Natalya didn't attack. She just back flipped into the air and disappeared down the hole in the floor behind her! Lilac and her friends let out horrified gasps as they watched their opponent disappear down the hole. She had tricked them. She had deliberately chatted with Lilac and sowed the seeds of manipulation into the dragon's brain so she would think Natalya was about to fight. Now she'd given herself a twenty-second head start with that move. Twenty precious seconds that allowed Natalya to get a good distance away. The Avalicians shook off their shock and ran towards the hole.

"She's getting away! Stop her!" cried Carol.

"No way is she eluding punishment again!" declared Lilac.

But just before the Avalicians could dive down the hole and chase after the trench-coated woman, Spade drew out five cards, all four aces and a joker card, and he threw them at the heroes. The dragon, wildcat and hounds quickly ran out of the way before the cards could hit them. Spade drew out ten more cards, five in each hand with five spade cards in his left hand and five diamond cards in his right hand, and he swiped his arms. The cards sailed towards the heroes, their razor sharp edges glinting in the dim light of the dungeon as they sailed towards their prey. Lilac was quick to react, spinning around on her tiptoes and allowing her whippy tendrils to take the punishment for her. The cards were swatted away by the dragon girl's primary weapons. But that move hadn't been a move intending to kill. Spade had distracted the heroes with his card tricks and as he threw one last hand of cards, all five of them heart cards numbered 1-5, he jumped down the hole and ran after Natalya.

Carol jumped up and moved her legs up and down rapidly to stop the cards from hitting home and then scampered on all fours towards the hole. Lilac followed after Carol, moving so fast that she overtook her friend and jumped down the hole first. The Bassets followed, scampering on all fours after the two girls and jumping. But the moment all five Avalicians were down in the hole, Spade delivered one final surprise to slow them down. He whipped out a remote device and pressed on the single button that protruded from the top of the device. Before blowing a hole in the ceiling of the tunnel, Natalya had set up bombs in the tunnel entrance and Spade had just detonated them. The bombs exploded in unison and the tunnel entrance was brought crumbling down onto the floor, much of the ceiling also caving in with the entrance. The noise of crumbling and falling rocks echoed through the sewers. Lilac, Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela all arrived just in time to see that their only way of chasing after Natalya and Spade was sealed off. A huge pile of bricks, metal and concrete had built-up from the cave-in. There was no way past it.

"It's a dead end!" exclaimed Milla in horror, "We'll never catch them now!"

"Trust Natalya and Spade to have a contingency plan." muttered Miguel, "They were always good at that stuff."

"They're NOT getting away this time!" Lilac snarled viciously, "If I have to tear down that pile brick by brick in order to catch them then so be it! Stand back everybody, I'll get us through!"

"Geez, what's gotten you so worked up Little Miss Heropants? One would think you were out for blood or something!" blustered Carol, amazed at how determined to catch Natalya Lilac was.

"Carol, remember what Natalya did to us last year?!" retorted Lilac, "She nearly killed us, all of us and nearly ruined Christmas for all of Avalice! She has to be subdued before she can cause anymore harm! That's why I'm so keen to stop her!"

Carol nodded, understanding fully why her best friend was so into her pursuit of the crime boss. She supposed that if she were in Lilac's boots, she would want Natalya arrested too. Lilac curled up into a ball and boosted into the rock pile, sparkling dazzlingly as she did so. She then slammed straight into the rock pile, tearing up chunks of debris as she ploughed her way through it. Natalya was not evading her this time. The villainess was going to be imprisoned and Lilac would be the one to escort her personally to her cell…

* * *

><p>Up in the dark, endless void of space above, a fleet of battleships were moving into position.<p>

There were about twenty battleships in the fleet, all of them very heavily armed, very large in size and all of them piloted by very determined crew members who had one goal in mind. They were not Avalician battleships, but they were not here to invade the planet either. The crew on all twenty ships were alien but their species was familiar to at least a few people on Avalice. One of them had been on the planet before.

Commander Torque clenched the arms of his seat nervously as his fleet finally finished positioning themselves in strategic places all around the north side of Avalice. This was it, his new crew's big moment. They would finally have the displeasure of fighting Lord Brevon himself. Torque had trained them all for this moment, a moment that he feared would see the deaths of yet another crew for the alien Chaser. He had lost one of his crews to Lord Brevon before. He had even sworn to his captain on his dying breath that he would keep Avalice's Kingdom Stone out of Brevon's hands before descending to the planet itself and befriending some of its locals. He thought of them now, especially Lilac. Of all the Avalicians he had met, Lilac was the one he remembered the most fondly. He remembered how kind she had been towards him. How helpful she had been to him on his mission. How she had come to rescue him when he had been captured during the mission. And most importantly, how welcome she had made him feel on Avalice. He vowed that Brevon would not get anywhere near Lilac or her friends. It was the most they deserved for their hospitality towards him and also for ruining Brevon's reputation. They had inspired more races to fight against Brevon and his army and because of this, it was likely that Brevon was going to meet his end. And hopefully, that end would be right here, right now just thousands of miles above Avalice. Seemed fitting to end Brevon's tyranny right here now Torque thought about it.

"OK crew, keep your senses alert." Torque ordered, "Brevon's gonna arrive very shortly. Agent Terra has given us a big head start and now we're all here waiting for Brevon to arrive."

"It's like we're a web spun by spiders and we're waiting for the flies, Brevon's fleet, to fly into it!" laughed one of the crew members, a Chaser who was younger than Torque and slightly inexperienced.

"Come into my parlour said the spider to the fly…only we're waiting for something a bit more threatening than a fly." said another Chaser, this one older and a little paranoid but very experienced in battle.

"Nevertheless, our trap is baited and set and Brevon's gonna fall right into it. And all thanks to Agent Terra." said Torque grimly, "I hope we don't lose anybody in the fore coming fight…"

"Commander, I'd have thought you'd be more prepared for the possibility of losing any men." said the young Chaser.

"I know Damian but…you know…I've lost a crew before and…I just can't bear to lose another." said Torque, his voice edged with worry.

"Given how unprepared Brevon us for us, I think HE'S the one who should worry about losing a crew." snorted Damian.

"Don't be too confident sonny, Brevon isn't somebody to be taken lightly." said the older Chaser, "Need we remind you how many heroes have fallen by his blade? THOUSANDS. Including Chasers. We can't under-estimate him."

"Hence why we're taking the subtle approach Olaf." Torque replied, "When Brevon shows up, we'll shower him with relentless fire. And also bring out the secret weapons. Brevon's gonna be surprised when he sees what we've got for him."

Damian and Olaf nodded agreeably. They knew what the secret weapons were and they could hardly wait to see them up against Brevon and his forces. It would be worth it to see Brevon's face as his own tech was used against him. Then suddenly, a loud bleeping sound was heard and a female Chaser with violent skin and blue eyes peered at the control panel curiously.

"Positions everybody! Brevon's fleet is here! It's just coming out of light speed!" she cried out in alarm.

"Thank you Violet." the commander replied, "Get ready to fire men. The big moment is here at last. Brevon must NOT get to Avalice! Neither him, nor his fleet!"

The Chasers nodded and readied themselves for the inevitable battle that was about to unfold. They knew that Avalice was an important planet to protect. Torque had told them about the Kingdom Stone and how it had changed form. Energy like that couldn't fall into Brevon's hands, no matter what happened. They also knew that if Brevon was coming to Avalice again, it couldn't be for anything good. It was possible he might even want to destroy the planet and Torque was not letting an innocent planet lose its right to house life and live in the galaxy amongst the stars to Brevon. Too many planets had been lost to Brevon and Avalice was not about to become another planet that Brevon would claim. The commander's eyes fixed firmly ahead of him as a fleet of evil looking ships suddenly appeared from nowhere and cruised towards his fleet. The flagship of the fleet caught Torque's attention the most. He knew that ship like the back of his hand. He knew what the ship was. It was a Dreadnought, a powerful ship of death that had claimed many lives for its pilot. He knew what the very appearance of the Dreadnought meant.

Lord Brevon had arrived…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Well things are getting intense. What will happen next? Will Lilac stop Natalya and will Torque stop Brevon? Find out next time as things get more intense...<strong>_


	4. Chapter 3: Cancelling the Invasion

_Chapter 3: Cancelling the Invasion_

It took little more than about two minutes before Lilac finally broke through the rock pile and opened up the tunnel entrance. She burst through the pile as if tearing her way through paper and skidded to a halt on the other side. Showers of pebbles and rocks followed her through before coming to a halt on the floor behind her feet. Now the entrance was no longer blocked, Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela followed Lilac through the hole she had just made.

"That was very well done Miss Lilac." said Miguel.

"I doubt any of us could have broken through that." agreed Lela.

"Eh, I probably could have but it was quicker for Lilac to do it." said Carol casually, "I might have taken too long."

"OK we're through. There's still a chance we can catch Natalya and Spade." Lilac reported, "So we've gotta hurry. If we lose her now then it's unlikely she'll ever be captured."

"How will we get all the Red Scarves?" asked Milla worriedly, "We can't take all of those ninjas on at once, nor can we arrest them all again."

"Uh Milla, remember when I took you down here to recruit Spade in our quest to beat Lord Brevon last year?" noted Carol, "I took on 99 ninjas, and beat them ALL. And I beat Spade himself to boot! Those Red Scarves haven't got a chance against us!" she boasted.

Milla nodded. She did remember that time and she had been impressed with the wildcat's battle prowess. True it helped how she had fought them with her motorbike as well as her own fists and feet but it was still an impressive feat, even for a teenage feline like Carol.

"They do now they're back with their leader." muttered Lilac, "Now come on girls and guy, the longer we stand chatting, the longer Natalya gets away from us! Let's go!"

Without waiting for anybody, the dragon boosted off in a whoosh of sparkles and whooshed through the tunnels at lightning speed. Carol and the Basset family quickly ran off after their reptilian friend. As the Avalicians pursued their enemy through the tunnels, rancid fumes began to trickle up their noses. Being in a drainage tunnel, it was bound to be smelly and Carol found herself near choking on the odiferous scent all around. It was enough to make somebody sick. The Basset family were just as unfortunate. Basset hounds have a very good sense of smell, a trait that worked against them in a rotten smelling place like the sewers. Milla clutched her nose as if hoping she could tear it off and stick it back on later when they were somewhere more pleasant smelling.

"Ugh! This place stinks!" the hound gagged feebly, "Why on Avalice would Natalya want to hide down here?"

"Simple, nobody would think to look for her and a bunch of ninjas in a sewer." retorted Carol, clutching her nose and trying to ignore the smell, "Funny how her hideout's nowhere near as smelly as the tunnels themselves. Heck in that place, you kinda forget you're in a sewer."

"It certainly was the case for us." said Lela grimly, "Natalya managed to make some places in these tunnels look nothing like drainage tunnels such as her lair, the Red Scarves's sleeping quarters and that fighting arena. In those places, it was hard to believe we were still in a sewer."

"And despite the fact we're no longer Red Scarves, we're returning to their hideout." mused Miguel, "I'd hoped we'd never set foot down here again. Me, you or Milla for that matter. Hopefully when we stop Natalya, we can just stay away from this place full stop."

"Yes, that would be nice honey." Lela agreed.

As for Milla, she scampered on ahead until she caught up with Carol. The wildcat looked to her left and saw that Milla was now beside her.

"You OK?" she asked.

"Aside from the bad smells down here, I'm fine." Milla replied, "But I'm a little worried about Lilac. She seems a bit…dark all of a sudden. It's like Natalya coming back has changed her in some way."

"Yeah, she seems a bit TOO keen to get the woman behind bars." thought Carol, "My hatred of her aside, I just want her locked up but Lilac's acting like she's hunting her down. I bet there's more to this than wanting Natalya arrested. Maybe her nightmares are getting to her…" she added, her tone becoming heavy as she spoke.

"Poor Lilac." said Milla sadly.

"Yeah…poor Lilac." agreed Carol.

The wildcat and hound pressed on through the tunnels, hoping to catch up to their best friend. If it was the nightmares that were giving Lilac the unusually high desire to see Natalya arrested then Carol wondered just how badly they were affecting Lilac. Was it so bad that the dragon girl wanted her former boss dead? No. Lilac was not a killer. Carol was disgusted she had even thought of that possibility. How could she think that about her best friend?! And yet Carol wondered how over the edge Lilac had possibly been tipped. And would stopping Natalya help her balance perfectly on the edge again? Carol hoped so. She didn't like the idea of Lilac slowly becoming something dark and distant. She liked her friend the way she was and couldn't bear the thought of losing something that precious to her…

* * *

><p>Miles above the planet's atmosphere, Lord Brevon's sinister fleet was just coming out of light speed. As soon as the Dreadnought had taken off with the rest of the fleet following closely behind, they had all activated their hyper-drives and blasted off into the void of space beyond. Being at light speed, the whole journey to Avalice had taken less than two minutes to complete. The only reason Torque's fleet had gotten to Avalice first was because they had gotten a head start courtesy of Agent Terra. The time the Chasers had spent waiting for Brevon was just waiting for the fleet to take off. The Chasers themselves had already been in space, their ships deliberately on standby and waiting for Terra to give them any updates. The moment Torque had received Terra's message, he had given the order and then the fleet had warp-sped over to Avalice.<p>

Brevon had no idea that a Chaser fleet was waiting for him as he approached Avalice. All he thought about now was that his moment of revenge had finally arrived. The Dreadnought cruised slowly through space, heading towards the blue and green planet that mocked his existence the longer it lived. The alien warlord's eyes narrowed at the planet as if hoping he could somehow make it spontaneously combust with just a thought. Wouldn't it be great if his fleet had magic powers like that? His robotic servant Syntax hovered behind Brevon's right shoulder. It was a position the fem-bot seemed to like taking up on the Dreadnought.

"The fleet is out of hyper-space." reported Syntax, "Estimated arrival time on Avalice: six minutes."

**"And after six minutes, this poisonous planet will cease to make a mockery of our names any further." **Brevon growled, **"When we arrive on Avalice, you will command the Dreadnought." **he ordered, turning to face Syntax.

"Thank you sir. But why do you require me to command your flagship?" Syntax asked.

**"Because I'm going down onto the planet itself to find that long-haired cretin." **explained Brevon, **"To make doubly sure she doesn't get caught in the crossfire, I want to capture her myself. And then I can have the honour of killing her with my bare hands!"**

"How will you dispose of that "dragon-girl" person?"

**"I've had many fantasies of how to kill her…so many good ones that I've decided that I'm going to try…ALL OF THE ABOVE!"**

There was a crazed look in Brevon's eyes as he said it. If Syntax was capable of expressing emotions, she might have been slightly disturbed by her master's wickedness. She just took in Brevon's answer and said nothing more as the alien with the huge unibrow turned back to face Avalice.

**"As a consolation prize, I might be able to retrieve that precious relic that I used to power up my ship." **the tyrant purred, **"Yes…that was indeed a powerful item. It could be useful to my army. Maybe its power could be used to strengthen my army and take back what I've lost…"**

The Dreadnought then suddenly jerked violently as if trying to throw everybody on-board out into the open, uninhabitable atmosphere outside. Even Brevon himself fell over onto his side, perplexed at what had happened. Was his ship having a technical fault already? This couldn't be. The Dreadnought was well-built and his men had taken great care in building it! They never made mistakes in building such a powerful vessel! Was he under attack? Impossible. Nobody knew he was here. Or didn't they…? The alien warlord picked himself up and glared at the cockpit window.

**"What was that?!" **Brevon barked fiercely.

Syntax ran a quick scan before answering the lord's question.

"It appears we were expected." she droned, her voice still emotionless even in a tense moment such as this one, "There is another fleet out there. And it's shooting at us."

The green-skinned alien was livid. How could he have been expected?! He'd been so careful! There was no way he had given himself away! How did this mysterious fleet know he was here? Was it a coincidence that there just happened to be a fleet near Avalice as he was arriving? Brevon wasn't sure but at the same time he didn't care. Nobody was going to stop him from reaching Avalice and taking revenge. The monstrous lord picked himself up, his eyes a pool of rage.

**"TEAR THAT FLEET APART!" **he roared, **"LEAVE NO SHIP STANDING! WE WILL NOT BE DENIED OUR REVENGE!"**

His crew obeyed and they passed the message on to the rest of the fleet. Once the fleet had gotten the message, the ships began firing rapidly at their attackers. Huge blasts of laser fire rocketed through the black, starry void and headed towards the attacking fleet. Unluckily for Brevon's fleet though, the Chaser's fleet was well-shielded. They knew that the Dreadnought and its followers would tear the ships apart in seconds if they didn't have some kind of defence so all twenty ships had been equipped with sophisticated shielding technology that could defend the fleet from a meteor shower. Brevon's fleet wouldn't get past their defences. The lasers hammered against the ships but a faint blue outline just above the bombarded vessels showed that the lasers were in fact hitting force fields instead of the ships. There was a loud noise from the heavy bombardment that hammered in the Chaser's ears but otherwise, no damage was done.

"The shields are holding excellently commander!" Violet cried excitedly.

"Excellent." said Torque, pleased that the shields were doing their jobs well, "Keep firing at Brevon's fleet. The Dreadnought might be well-shielded but Terra will see to that."

"I bet she's already sabotaged the shield generator on that thing." snickered Damian, "And we know what that means. Bye-bye Brevon!"

"Let's hope it turns out this way." murmured Torque unsurely.

He watched on as the fleet continued to fire at the Dreadnought and its surrounding vessels. For the first time in his life, he was confident that Brevon was as good as defeated. He and the Chasers had fought the tyrannical world conqueror many times, and had suffered many defeats at his hands. Many Chasers had joined the thousands of heroes slaughtered at Brevon's hands. But today the Chasers were going to win. This time it was Brevon who was going to lose…

* * *

><p>Over on the Dreadnought, Brevon's teeth clenched with rage as he realized that his fleet was fighting an impossible battle. They had clearly put their all into planning this attack. The fleet was equipped with shields that would withstand any shot his fleet fired. This could only mean one thing.<p>

**"That fleet belongs to those Chasers…" **he growled, **"Only they have shield-tech that powerful! And it seems to have gotten better since the last time they used it! Even my flagship can't penetrate them!"**

A powerful laser blast hit the Dreadnought again, causing it to rock and throw everybody sideways. At the rate the lasers were going, the Dreadnought's shields would give way and then the ship would be vulnerable. The Chaser fleet had certainly upgraded its firepower considerably since the last time they had fought. Brevon picked himself up but before he could give any orders, A laser shot rocketed past the Dreadnought and moments later, a loud bang was heard and pieces of debris began floating away in the weightless pool of starry black beyond. One of his ships had just been destroyed. Brevon could feel the anger coursing through his veins. How could this be happening to him?! His fleet was unstoppable and yet the Chasers had him on the ropes already! One of his ships was already down and the Chaser fleet was continuing to bombard his ship and the others with heavy firepower! If he didn't do something soon, his fleet would be destroyed!

**"We must get past those shields of the Chasers!" **growled Brevon.

"It is highly recommended that we fire an EMP bomb at the fleet. The blast will take out their shields." droned Syntax, "Not even shields as powerful as them will withstand such an attack.

**"It's worth a shot…" **Brevon murmured, clearly not pleased that he would have to use an EMP bomb already in this fight, **"Troops, fire the EMP bombs! Expose the attacking fleet to our relentless might!"**

The crew members nodded obediently and they got to work on firing the bombs immediately. But before anything could happen at all, the lights in the cockpit suddenly went dead, plunging everybody on-board into total darkness. The control panel's dials and buttons weren't illuminated anymore and the lights in the ceiling had all gone out. It wasn't just the cockpit that was devoid of any light. The entire ship had gone black. The crew all held their breaths, wondering what the heck had happened. The Dreadnought had just experienced a power failure, a total blackout. But how?! Why?! The Dreadnought NEVER broke down! And it certainly never had a power failure! It was like the ship had been rebuilt from scratch but made ten times worse than before! Brevon went wild with rage as Syntax lit up her optic to allow some light to return to the cabin.

**"WHAT'S GOING ON?!" **the warlord thundered angrily, **"Why has my ship gone dark?!"**

"I dunno!" whimpered one of the crew-members in the cockpit, "Everything's gone dead! It's like the power's just tripped or something!"

**"Either that or we have a saboteur on-board…" **Brevon snarled, **"Order General Serpentine to find the intruder and kill it at once!"**

"It might be more difficult to find the intruder without power sir." noted Syntax.

**"Then fire the emergency back-up unit!" **snapped Brevon fiercely.

Syntax nodded. Brevon had been prepared for such an eventuality. Syntax tapped into the emergency back-up unit, which was located in a dark area on the bottom floor of the ship.

"Emergency power-unit activation code 8643-5295. Back-up power activate." she ordered.

But even as she said that, nothing happened. The crew allowed a few tense minutes to pass by before concluding that they weren't getting any power back online. The emergency back-up unit hadn't worked. The Dreadnought was still powerless.

"It appears that the emergency back-up unit has failed to function sir." droned Syntax.

**"The saboteur must have found out about it and sabotaged that too." **Brevon muttered, secretly impressed with how the Chasers had managed to do this to him of all people and succeed, **"Get the power back online this instant! And then find and kill the saboteur…"**

"Um, my lord? I think the saboteur's already left…" mused a crew member, pointing a trembling finger ahead of him at the cockpit window as if afraid it was going to crack open and allow them all to be sucked out into outer space.

Brevon was right behind the alien in a millisecond. His red eyes stared ahead of him as he saw what was happening and understood what his crew member meant by what he had said. There was an escape pod flying away from the Dreadnought. There shouldn't be one flying away from the Dreadnought. He hadn't told anybody to evacuate the ship at all. And nobody had any need to evacuate. This proved one thing, somebody unauthorized had been on his ship and had escaped in one of the escape pods. There had been a saboteur all along and that saboteur had just ruined everything. The power cuts had all been down to that Chaser in the fleeing pod. His ship was powerless and now the saboteur had escaped, Torque's fleet would target him and tear the ship apart! At the moment, firepower had ceased to come in his direction in fear of accidentally hitting the escape pod but once the Chaser was out of the way, Torque's flagship would concentrate all fire on the Dreadnought and blow it apart. Brevon's fleet wouldn't survive without its flagship! It was already in trouble, losing the Dreadnought would just seal the fight in the Chaser's favour! But Brevon was more stubborn than even the most obstinate of mules. He wasn't going down yet. The saboteur had left, that meant he could get the Dreadnought back online and it wouldn't be sabotaged again with the meddling Chaser off his ship.

**"Get my ship back online and destroy that pod!" **Brevon barked.

"Sir, estimated time of power restoration is five minutes maximum. The pod's velocity rate suggests that it will be out of reach before the power is back online." replied Syntax, "We cannot restore the power in time to destroy our infiltrator."

**"Then I'll have to do it myself!" **the lord snapped angrily, **"I'll get my mech ready and contact the general! Me and him will tear that pod to shreds!" **

"I will get the power back on while you catch the intruder sir. What shall we do once the power's back on?" asked Syntax.

**"Raise the shields, fire the EMP bombs and then pick off that fleet one ship at a time." **ordered Brevon, **"I want the whole fleet destroyed!"**

With nothing more to add, the armoured alien turned on his heels and stomped out of the room. Syntax was left behind to take charge of the cockpit now that her master was going outside. As Brevon headed towards the main hangar bay where his battle mechs and battleships were stored, he switched on a comlink mounted in his arm gauntlet.

**"General, meet me in the hangar bay! We've been sabotaged and the saboteur is escaping!" **he barked, **"You are coming with me to chase the saboteur down and kill it immediately!"**

"No problem my lord! What are we going to use to catch the infiltrator?" Serpentine's loud, gruff voice replied to Brevon over the comlink.

**"We're using our battle mechs." **replied Brevon, **"The escaping Chaser is in one of our escape pods. We'll rip it wide open and allow the lethal atmosphere outside to finish it off."**

"I LOVE THAT IDEA! I'll be down there immediately!" cried Serpentine enthusiastically.

Brevon switched off his comlink and continued heading down towards the hangar bay. Syntax would have his ship back online in five minutes. And once the infiltrator was dead, Brevon would feel safe with the knowledge that the Chasers wouldn't be able to use him or her again. The invasion of Avalice was still going to happen. The Chasers weren't going to stop him, not while he was so close to getting to the planet right now…

* * *

><p>Completely unaware of the battle going on above her own planet, Lilac the Dragon Girl skidded to a halt and pressed herself against the cold brick wall as she allowed her friends time to catch up with her. She had run through most of the drainage tunnels and had now reached the one area that she had dreaded ever setting foot in again…Natalya's lair.<p>

Lilac peered around the corner and stared straight ahead of her. There was a heavy iron door set in the wall at the end of the tunnel ahead. It was caked in rust and any remaining metal had stained with ugly green moss. There was a circular handle that had rusted completely, not a speck of silver left on it. The dragon girl knew that it had been there for hundreds, maybe thousands of years. The tunnels were not quite as old as Shang Tu itself but they were definitely showing signs of a long existence down underground. Despite the door's decayed state, it opened and closed perfectly. Age hadn't stopped it from functioning at all. Just beyond that door was a tunnel leading to Natalya's throne room. The teenage girl could already picture Natalya sitting in her throne, completely relaxed and confident she had evaded capture, not expecting any unwelcome guests at all. The thought made Lilac smirk confidently. She could storm into the room and catch Natalya completely by surprise. And then finally, Natalya could be thrown into a cell where she belonged.

A minute passed before Lilac heard the pitter-pattering of friendly feet coming up frantically behind her. Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela screeched to a halt just behind Lilac and the female Avalician turned around to face the four of them. She put a finger to her lips and peeked around the corner a second time. There was nobody in sight. Nobody had heard them. They were safe.

"OK guys, here we are. Just round that corner is the door that will lead up to Natalya's throne room." hissed Lilac, "Once we get inside, we'll ambush her and take her back to the Royal Palace where a nice warm cell is waiting for her."

"Eh…minus the nice warm part." snickered Carol, "Dungeons are always cold you know."

"Alright wise gal." sighed Lilac in annoyance, "A nice COLD cell then. When we get in that room, I will attack first. Then the hounds will come in next and Carol can help me finish her off. If we all attack at once, she has no chance of getting away."

"I'll hit her with my shields!" squealed Milla gleefully, "That'll keep her from hurting any of us!"

"Provided we hit her." murmured Miguel, remembering the dragon's insane agility and speed.

"OK dear, you go first and we'll follow." said Lela nervously.

Lilac nodded and emerged from round the corner. She ran up to the iron door and grabbed the handle. She thanked herself for the fact she wore gloves, otherwise the door handle would scrape her hand most horribly. She twisted the handle, a loud creaking sound piercing her ears as it opened. The dragon swore and ran back around the corner, expecting Natalya to come out and investigate what was going on. Surely the noise would have attracted her attention! But nothing happened. Maybe Natalya hadn't heard after all. Lilac waited two minutes before continuing with the door. She fully opened up the door, the creaks much quieter as she twisted the handle all the way around. She opened the door as slowly as possible, making sure that it didn't make a sound and attract unwanted attention. She was in the heart of the Red Scarves territory so vigilance was paramount in this part of the tunnels. The door was fully opened and the dragon was met with the sight of a carpeted floor that stretched up to a pair of golden doors at the end of a tunnel. Natalya had made this part of the lair look especially nice to suit her well-cultured personality and etiquette. The floor carpet, stolen from some fancy story of course, was green on both sides with a red stipe with gold pinstripes on the edges stretched down the middle as if somebody had painted a huge red line down the centre of the carpet. Lilac hoped she would get it very dirty just to spite her despicable nemesis.

"OK everybody on the count of three, we pounce." Lilac called down to her friends, "Stay close to me as I boost into the doors."

The cat and dogs nodded and they ran up to the iron door, waiting for Lilac to count down to three. Lilac got down on her hands and knees and prepared to Dragon Boost into the golden doors ahead. They had also been stolen from an opulent furniture shop in Shang Mu. Everything in Natalya's lair had been stolen from somewhere at some point as if Natalya wanted the world to know what a crook she was. She had boasted about this to Lilac and Carol herself when they had been her disciples once. Lilac tensed herself, ready to launch at the door.

"One…two…THREE!"

In a sparkling flash of purple, Lilac rocketed into the door like a charging rhino. Not caring if she caught the attention of Natalya, Spade or any Red Scarf ninja, she slammed straight into the door and tore it directly off its hinges. Whoever had previously owned the doors would have to forgive her for this. Maybe when they were returned to the shop they had been stolen from, they could be repaired. The doors crashed down onto the floor heavily, kicking up particles of dust and Lilac landed feet first on the broken doors.

"Alright Natalya, give it up before I…"

The dragon's voice died down in her throat as she looked up and took in the scenery around her. She was in an opulent room that somehow had an evil edge to it with a wealthy throne sitting proudly at the end of it. There was a carpet on the floor and display cases that had once contained valuable treasures that had once been stolen from each kingdom of Avalice. But there was something terribly wrong about the room. It wasn't the fact that it was Natalya's throne room…it was the fact that Natalya wasn't in it! Lilac looked around wildly as her friends ran up beside her. Natalya was definitely not here. The display cases were devoid of any treasures, signifying that nobody was home or that the Red Scarves had moved out somewhere. This couldn't be! Natalya must be here! She had gone down into the drainage tunnels! She couldn't be anywhere else! Where was she? Carol adopted a battle-ready stance, expecting danger but she quickly saw that the only people in the room were herself and her friends so she relaxed. She allowed a finger to curl over her chin in thought.

"Hey! Natalya's not here!" cried Carol in disbelief.

"I can't smell her anywhere." said Milla helplessly, her sensitive nose twitching furiously, "She's not here."

"She must have moved out." murmured Miguel taking notice of the empty display cases, "Why would these cases be empty if she was planning on staying? You know how much she loves to display her steals."

"Maybe they were retrieved after the scarves were arrested?" suggested Lela.

"No Mrs. Basset, nothing was retrieved from here." noted Lilac, "Gong only arrested the Red Scarves, he didn't comb the place for stolen property."

"Mainly because we never told him about it…" said Carol sheepishly, "I kinda feel stupid for not telling him everything in this lair was stolen property."

"Least she left her throne behind." Lilac pointed out, "That can be returned to wherever it came from. Search the whole lair; see if you can find Natalya. She might not be in this room but she could be anywhere else in the lair."

"Um Lilac, don't ya think that if Natalya's not in her throne room, it kinda means she's nowhere in the lair at all?" asked Carol.

"You do realize this place isn't the only room in the lair Carol?" snapped Lilac, "And Natalya doesn't only spend time in the throne room, she uses the other rooms as well! Now just do as you're told before we lose that fiend in dragon's clothing and her Red Scarfed minions!"

That did it. Carol clenched her fists and frowned at her best friend in fury. She loved her reptilian friend very much but there were times where Lilac just got on her nerves and she was doing so right now. The dragon needed bringing down to Avalice again before she got too carried away with her mission. The wildcat strode up to Lilac, staring her straight in the eye.

"I don't know what's up with you Little Miss Heropants but something tells me there's more to this than simply wanting Natalya imprisoned." said Carol sternly, "You're getting WAY too edgy and you're stressing yourself out for no reason!"

"Don't you dare tell me I'm stressing myself out for no reason!" retorted Lilac, "Natalya's free and the Red Scarves are now free so they can frolic about the three kingdoms stealing what they please and causing trouble! Remember the Christmas Raid we foiled last year? Natalya could well try that again! They have to be stopped!"

"I know Lilac but you should relax and take it easy." said Carol, her voice edged with concern, "You do know what too much stress can do to ya right?"

"DON'T TELL ME TO BE CALM CAROL!" the purple-skinned dragon bellowed, "How can I possibly rest when one of my biggest enemies is still running free and has now got her group back in business?! I can't possibly rest until they're all behind bars again, Natalya included!"

"I understand that perfectly Lilac, but what you need to understand is that acting like it's the end of the freaking world because her Royal Bitchiness is on the loose is not gonna do you any favours at all!" the green-furred feline snapped, "How will you stop her if you exhaust yourself just trying to catch her? And by the way, your attitude is freaking me and poor Milla out. You keep making me think you want Natalya dead or something and you know that we DON'T kill! We have lines we don't cross remember?"

"I DON'T WANT NATALYA DEAD FOR DRAGON'S SAKE!" Lilac screamed in rage. Her face seemed to be turning red in response to how angry she was getting.

Carol recoiled. She had never seen Lilac this angry before. She had pushed a few buttons too many on her it seemed. But why was Lilac getting so stressed? Was there more to this than just wanting Natalya arrested after all? Lilac's shouting had been so loud and frightening that Milla ended up bursting into tears. One thing that she couldn't stand was seeing her friends argue. It was upsetting to her, especially when said friends were Lilac and Carol. Seeing them bicker made her feel like running away and hiding in another room until they stopped. Miguel hugged his sobbing child tenderly whereas Lela glared at the two girls with her hands on her hips. She now looked like a stern mother about to tell her own children off

"Alright you two, that's quite enough!" yelled Lela angrily, "All this bickering isn't going to do anybody any favours! The longer you two spend arguing, the further the Red Scarves get away from us! Did you consider that for a minute?"

"And look what you've just done!" shouted Miguel, "You've made Milla cry! Shame on you two!"

"P-p-please stop f-f-fighting!" wailed Milla, "You're s-scaring m-me! Please s-stop it!"

The dragon and wildcat stared at the crying hound in shame. How could they do this to poor Milla? They were better than this, they should have known better than to argue and make their friend cry. And Lela had made them realize that their arguing was just letting Natalya get away. What a waste of time over nothing. Carol's ears drooped down behind her head in guilt.

"Gosh…Milla I…I'm sorry." she said quietly.

"We didn't mean to argue." said Lilac solemnly, "And I…Carol's right…I'm getting too stressed over nothing. I'm sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. I won't shout like that again, I promise."

Milla wiped away her tears and walked over to Lilac. Being the big-hearted girl she was, the dog wrapped her arms around her big-sister figure and hugged her tenderly.

"Apology accepted Lilac." she said sweetly, "Thank you Lilac."

"No Milla, thank you." the dragon replied, hugging the sweet puppy in return, "You've given me the wake-up call I needed. From now on, I won't stress myself over a mission."

"That sounds good." said Carol brightly, "Though was I being overly-presumptuous when I thought there was more to this than wanting Natalya imprisoned?"

"No Carol, you were right. I have a confession to make." the dragon answered, "There IS more to this than wanting Natalya imprisoned. I'm so desperate to capture her because…because…"

She swallowed nervously before answering.

"…because it'll end my nightmares." she said softly, "I've been having bad dreams about her just like I dream about Lord Brevon as you know and the nightmares…they're getting to me, and I mean REALLY getting to me. I'm scared to go to sleep at night now because of them. So I feel that if Natalya's behind bars…I'll be free from her at last. My nightmares can end and I can sleep peacefully for once. Maybe if I stop worrying about her, I won't dream about Lord Brevon too. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you this before. I hope you can all forgive me." she added, her face falling in despair.

Carol now understood why her friend was so edgy. It wasn't just about Natalya after all. It was about her nightmares. Carol shamed herself for being so insensitive. She knew her best friend had been plagued by bad dreams for months on end and thus, she should have caught onto that immediately. The dragon had had a nightmare last night so that should have sent alarm bells ringing. And yet she hadn't connected the dots until now. Feeling guilty, the tomboy cat walked up to her best friend and embraced her tenderly. The Basset family watched in awe, touched by the sweet, tenderness of the scene before them.

"Oh Lilac, I should have known that was the case." Carol said gently, "I'm sorry for not catching onto that sooner. I really should have known, especially because of what happened last night."

"It's OK." said Lilac, embracing Carol back, "I shouldn't let my nightmares get the best of me. I know you worry about me when I'm like this. You made that clear last night. I should be more sensitive of your feelings too."

"Don't sweat it Lilac." said Carol casually, "You worry over Natalya, that's understandable. And in order to help bring your nightmares to an end, I'm gonna help you capture her so we can put an end to her criminal career!" she declared.

"Thanks Carol." the dragon beamed graciously, "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Same here." the feline said, "Now, where shall we begin searching in this place…?"

"Hey…" Milla cut in, her nose twitching slightly, "I think…I think I can smell something. It's…" she paused as she sniffed the air eagerly, "It's nearby. It's in this room."

"What is it?" asked Lilac curiously.

Milla didn't answer. She just scampered on over to a nearby display case. This one wasn't empty, it was still full of the contents it was displaying. There were fifteen old scrolls in the case, all of them showing signs of a long existence on Avalice. Unlike everything else in the room, Natalya had left the scrolls behind. She didn't need them anymore since she had already stolen what treasures they talked about and already knew what she was going to do once their Shang Mu hideout was set-up. Milla was sniffing at the fifteenth one as if it smelled of chocolate.

"This thingy has Natalya's scent on it. She must have read it not too long ago." she estimated.

"What is it?" asked Lela curiously.

"Some kind of scroll." said Milla, picking it up and showing it to her mother, "It looks VERY old."

"Let me look at it." said Lilac, taking the scroll from Milla's hands, "Maybe it'll give us a clue As to where we can find Natalya. Or maybe give us an idea on what her next hair-brained scheme is."

"What makes you think that?" asked Milla curiously.

"Natalya had a habit of reading scrolls before missions. I saw her reading one once." explained Lilac, "I don't know where she got these from. Or what they're about but after reading one of these, Natalya and the scarves would come home with a treasure or two. So they might be treasure maps or something."

"Seems unusual for Natalya to be planning a raid so shortly after freeing her Red Scarf minions." mused Miguel.

"What do you expect? It's Natalya. She LIVES on the unusual." said Carol casually, "So let's see what that scroll says Lilac."

Eagerly, the dragon girl opened it up, not waiting for a minute. She unrolled the scroll, taking care not to tear it since the old age would likely have made the scroll fragile. She was met with a wall of text in a language she didn't recognize and a picture of a sinister purple gem. Her eyes were glued to the scroll as she saw the gem. She had never seen anything like it before. It was a captivating image on a crinkly old scroll yet the gem had a slightly malevolent appearance to it. A sign on what kind of gem it was? Lilac was unsure but she had an idea on what Natalya's next find was likely to be.

"What in the world is that…?" she mused, "Some kind of gem?"

"The Red Scarves are thieves, of course it'll be some kind of treasure." sighed Carol, glancing at the scroll, "Though that thing doesn't look attractive in the slightest. Looks kinda ugly to me. Why would she be looking for that?"

"It'll have some kind of value to her no doubt." murmured Lilac, "This scroll is written in Draconian. That was the language dragons used to write in before they learned English. I'm sorry to say that I can't read the scroll for Draconian is a dead language. Knowing Natalya and how dragon-crazy she is, she's probably learned how to read Draconian."

"So…the scroll was written by dragons! That's it! Natalya's got a scroll about some kind of dragon treasure! I bet she's going to look for that!" exclaimed Carol, "It makes sense why she's not here now!"

"But if that's the case, why are all her display cases empty?" Miguel reminded them, "Seems odd to have empty display cases if she's coming back to this place."

"Maybe…she's trying to trick us." suggested Lilac, "She wants to trick us into thinking she's moving out of here to throw us off the trail. Well we're going to wait right here for her to return and…"

Then suddenly, all hell broke loose. A terrible, earth-shaking explosion tore through the drainage tunnels, an ear-splitting bang causing everybody to throw their hands over their ears in protest. The room shook violently as if hit by an earthquake. Clouds of dust showered down from the ceiling and cracks began to spread across the walls. There was hideous black smoke billowing out from outside the room. Milla clutched her parents in terror as if her life depended on them. Lilac and Carol clutched each other as if hoping some miracle could save them from what was happening. The ceiling began to crack along with the walls. Bits of rubble broke away and crashed down into pieces on the floor below. The Avalicians stared at the ceiling in horror, waiting for it to begin caving in on them.

"Mommy! Daddy! What's happening?!" squealed Milla frantically.

"The room's caving in on us!" yelped Miguel, "A bomb must have gone off outside!"

"Natalya…" Lilac growled angrily, "She tricked us! She lured us into her lair and set us up for a trap! And we've fallen into it!"

"And now the ceiling's gonna turn us into pancakes!" shrieked Carol, "We've gotta get outta here!"

Without a moment to lose, Lilac curled up into a ball and boosted towards the entrance only to then screech to a halt as a tongue of flames lunged towards her. The carpeted floor outside the room had caught fire in the explosion! There was no way out through the door! Lilac retreated hastily. She had two choices. Either wait for the ceiling to crush her and her friends as more of it broke away. Or run out the door and get burnt alive or choked to death by the smoke. The dragon could feel her heart pounding worriedly. She was dead. She was finished. Her sixteen years of life was about to come to an end. She glanced over at Carol and the Bassets. Carol seemed to be trying to break through one of the walls, not that it would do her any good, and the Bassets were clutching each other as if it was the last time they'd ever hug each other. Lilac hung her head in shame. This was all her fault. Her determination to capture Natalya had led them to their deaths. She supposed she deserved this for her recklessness. With tears in her eyes, the dragon girl closed them, accepting her fate. Natalya had won. She was going to run free with nobody to stop her from committing crimes with the Red Scarves. And she, Lilac the Dragon Girl, was going to be crushed, burnt or suffocated down in the sewers of Shang Tu, dying in Natalya's throne room as it caved in. She supposed it was a very karmic way to go. Lilac could hear the ceiling groaning loudly as more brick work began to give away and the flames were getting closer to the empty doorway. The smoke billowed in even more, threatening to engulf everybody in the room. Only seconds remained before Lilac and her friends were killed. Knowing this would be the last thing she would ever do, Lilac gathered Carol and the Bassets together for one final group hug. The five heroes clutched each other, glad to be in each other's arms for their final seconds. And then…the ceiling gave way…

* * *

><p>Terra smiled proudly to herself as she lay back in the cockpit seat of the cruising escape pod she had stolen from the Dreadnought. The woman was feeling on top of the world with nothing bothering her or worrying her as the fight carried on around her. What a success the plan had been! It had been her idea to go in undercover as one of Brevon's men and sabotage his ship from within. And her idea had worked perfectly. Brevon was now in the middle of a fight with a powered-down Dreadnought all wide-open for attack with no shields and no weapons to defend itself. Terra could hardly stop thinking about the glorious moment she had sneaked into the generator room of the Dreadnought and used a hacking device to shut down all power to the ship. The device had been taken into the escape pod with her and glanced over at it as if it was a loving, loyal pet to her. In her eyes, it had definitely been a useful pet. Terra had supposed that the Dreadnought would get its power back eventually but it would be too late. The ship would be torn apart by her best friend's ship once she was out of the way.<p>

Now she was far enough away from the Dreadnought, a light flickered on the control panel in front of her. Terra was allowed to control the escape pod now so she gripped the steering wheel quickly. She steered the ship down towards the underside of Torque's ship. It would take her a few minutes to get to the ship but now she was out of the way, heading towards the underside of the vessel before her. Satisfied, Terra switched on her comlink.

"Hey Torque ol' buddy, it's your best friend Terra." she chirped cheerfully, "Mission accomplished. I'm heading back to your ship right now. You may fire upon Brevon's vessel."

"Are you out of the way?" Torque's nervous voice asked over her comlink.

"I am. I'm heading towards the underside of your ship. You won't hit me by accident, don't worry." said Terra brightly, "So fire away!"

"Gladly." said Torque, his voice unusually dark as he spoke to Terra.

Terra switched off her comlink and allowed her purple eyes to glance up through the window as Torque's ship opened fire on the Dreadnought just miles behind her. Large green lasers leapt out of the flagship's cannons and punched through the heavily armoured hull of the Dreadnought. The ship's armour would hold the laser fire for a while, but it wouldn't hold forever. The Dreadnought was hammered relentlessly as Torque's ship began firing rapidly at it. Terra punched the air triumphantly.

"HELL YEAH! Take that Lord Bread-Bin!" she crowed excitedly.

But then the battle took a turn. A turn for the worst. Before Terra knew what was happening, a loud thump was heard just above the escape pod, making it shudder dangerously. Terra clutched the wheel as if hoping it could save her life.

"Whoa, what was that? Is somebody shooting at me?" the Chaser asked nervously.

She looked up at her cockpit window…and screamed. Standing just above her, housed inside a giant mech, was Lord Brevon himself! His hideous, smiling face glowered down at her deviously. He was inside an orange coloured mech with over-sized arms, broad shoulders, a large round torso, four small legs, jets mounted in the back and a spherical window for him to see out of. This mech was perfect for fighting in outer space with. Terra had seen Brevon piloting the mech before. He would use the mech to carve open the window of a ship and leave the pilot to die out in the uninhabitable atmosphere outside. Brevon was clearly intending to do so for he drew out a chainsaw from his mech's right hand and stabbed down at the window. Terra stared at the chainsaw in terror. Brevon had seen her escaping from the Dreadnought! And now he was going to kill her! He was going to carve open the window and leave her to suffocate in space! Luckily for her, she had come with a contingency plan. She reached into one of her pockets and took out a small spherical object. She positioned it above her head and broke the capsule open. An air helmet folded out of the object and covered her entire head. It was soft and flexible at first but upon covering her head and fixing itself around the neck section of her armour, it became solid. It would withstand even the heaviest of onslaughts. Still, she knew that she wouldn't survive against Lord Brevon on her own. She needed help and fast. With the chainsaw cutting through the glass above her, Terra activated her comlink again.

"Red alert Torque, red alert! Brevon's found me and he's cutting my escape pod open!" she yelled frantically, "I've got my air helmet on but I can't fight Brevon alone! Requesting immediate assistance!"

"I'll have Violet to keep the ship firing at the Dreadnought Terra, I'll be right there in our secret weapon." Torque answered, "Hang on for me!"

"I will!" yelped Terra, jumping in her seat as the chainsaw above her carved a big line down the middle of the cockpit window.

She switched off and whipped out a pair of pistols that she had kept from her soldier disguise. She knew how powerful the weapons were so they would come in handy. They'd punch into Brevon heavily and keep him from attacking her. Hopefully, she might even break his cockpit window open and let the lethal atmosphere outside kill him! Terra sat tight and waited for Brevon to finish cutting her open. The chainsaw finally finished carving a huge rectangle in the window and Brevon took it away. Terra floated out of her chair, the weightless void outside like a pair of hands lifting her up out of the escape pod. It was like being picked up by her mother as a baby only there were no hands cradling her gently. In space, there is no gravity. Once outside a ship, there is nothing to keep you down. You just float away like a stone in water. Terra had trained in zero-gravity so she knew what to do. And her boots contained jets so she was in total control. Terra activated them now and spun herself around so she was now facing Lord Brevon. He wasn't alone on top of the escape pod. Serpentine was with him too, housed inside a mech just like his master. Serpentine's mech was yellow in colour with chunk arms and legs, four claws on each hand and laser cannons mounted on the shoulder. Serpentine was stationed where the mech's "head" was, his reptilian face visible through the dimly-lit cockpit window shielding him from the outside environment. Terra screwed her face up in disgust. She had never been this close to the alien warlord before, not even in disguise for she had lagged behind whenever gathering into the crowd of soldiers during her spying missions. Brevon's eyes narrowed at Terra angrily.

**"Clever you to have a capsuled-air helmet." **he muttered, **"If space won't bring your death then I will have to do it myself."**

"Just try it Lord Slop-bucket!" snarled Terra, "You ain't taking my life and you CERTAINLY aren't getting near Avalice! They had every right to ruin your name and now we're going to ruin your name even more!"

**"So eager to throw your life away…utterly wasteful of you Chasers." **the alien conqueror sneered.

"Agreed. Let's tear her to pieces!" Serpentine cackled delightedly.

Before anybody could make a move, Terra pointed her pistols at the warlord and general and opened fire rapidly, aiming directly at the cockpit windows of the mechs. Deep down, Terra felt excited. She was finally taking a shot at Lord Brevon himself and unlike a few months ago, she wasn't afraid of him. If some meagre dragon girl armed with only long tendrils could beat this monster then so could she.

Terra laughed as the pistol shots pounded on the windows heavily. Brevon's mech held up an arm to shield the window from the shots and Serpentine fired his shoulder cannons at Terra. The Chaser flew out of the way of the mech's firepower, her pistols still aimed at the window as she dodged. Serpentine could hardly see where he was aiming thanks to the Chaser girl's shooting. Most of his shots ended up missing Terra because of this. Brevon however had managed to manoeuvre his mech out of Terra's way and aimed the left arm at her. The girl yelped as the arm shape-shifted into a cannon and began shooting at her. Terra weaved around the shots as skilfully as any aerial ace could and she rocketed towards Brevon. She aimed the pistols at the evil alien and fired at the cockpit window again. Brevon found himself blinded by the brightly coloured shots hammering into his window. How could he aim at the impudent girl if he couldn't see her? Then Terra suddenly drew the guns away, swung her legs up and slammed both feet down onto Brevon's window. In zero gravity, the slightest movement could make a big difference. That kick wouldn't have done any harm if they were fighting on a planet but in space, Terra could kick Brevon and send the mech spinning. The green-skinned alien was surprised as his mech suddenly began to tilt backwards and drift away from Terra.

Laughing delightedly, the Chaser spiralled towards Serpentine and began shooting at his mech's shoulder cannons. Serpentine fired back at her, his shots stopping Terra's shots dead in their tracks. But Terra cruised towards the mech, shooting at Serpentine and she continued to close the gap between her and the general. She then made a sudden move that fooled Serpentine into thinking she was flying upwards. But she went down instead and flew underneath Serpentine. She aimed the guns at the mech's legs and aimed for the hip joints. She had been tutored in weak points on weapons of many kinds, especially giant mechs. One compulsory fact she had learned was that one of the weak spots on a mech were ALWAYS the hip joints. She opened fire, blasting wildly at the hips as if trying to kill a cockroach. Serpentine spun around, now looking down at the annoying little twerp shooting at him. No way was he being humiliated by this little brat! He aimed the mech's clawed hands at Terra and fired them. The hands launched out of his wrist sockets and headed towards Terra. Terra just boosted herself forward, dodging the claws and leaving them to miss. With no hands, the mech was now more vulnerable. The claws had an automatic feature on them that allowed the mech to recall them should they miss their target but Terra shot at the wrist sockets, damaging them horribly and preventing the claws from coming back to him. Serpentine howled in anger at his mech's damaged wrists. Terra just smirked.

"You really shouldn't have done that you dumb reptile!" she crowed, "Now you're fighting me with no hands! Ha, ha, ha! Fitting since snakes don't have hands!"

But Terra should have known better than to waste time laughing at her opponent's misfortune. She realized too late that she had allowed herself to be distracted and now suddenly, a giant orange claw closed around her body, trapping her like a rat in a cage. Terra struggled frantically but the claws wouldn't budge. She was stuck fast! The claw brought her into the view of Lord Brevon. He smirked at his captured opponent, pleased to be winning the fight at last.

**"Let's see how well you breathe with my mech's claw depleting you of your much needed oxygen supply…" **he purred wickedly, **"When I'm finished with you, I'll keep your brain and see if it can be of use to me."**

"Brevon, you're fighting a losing battle!" declared Terra, "Kill me now, it won't make a difference! Your ship's being torn apart as I'm speaking! Killing me won't stop that!"

**"Then how about I use you as a hostage and get the commander to stop firing in return for your safety?" **snarled Brevon, **"Thank you for giving me an idea little girl."**

"Oops…" the Chaser blurted out, annoyed with herself for opening her big mouth. She really shouldn't have given Brevon such a good idea on how to win the fight! The mission would be jeopardized and it would be all her fault!

But Terra wouldn't have to worry about her mistake getting costly. For before Brevon could do anything, a terrific punch slammed into the back of his mech and sent him hurling forwards. He let go of Terra, leaving her spinning through space as he spiralled forwards away from her. Terra steadied herself and smiled at what she was now looking at. Torque had arrived on the battlefield at last, piloting a mech of his own. It was heavily armoured with thick arms, powerful jets in the back and under-sized but still very powerful legs. The mech was armed with fists that could change into cannons or blades. The mech was Lord Brevon's own tech, duplicated by the Chasers themselves. In a way, they were using Brevon's own toy against him. The villain regained his position and he found himself glaring at Torque. His eyes went wide with shock. Serpentine also stared in disbelief at Torque's new weapon.

"Surprised to see me Brevon?" sneered Torque. It felt good to stare at his nemesis and not be afraid of him for once.

**"What is this?!" **Brevon blurted in shock, **"That's my tech! How did you manage to get a hold of one of my mechs?!"**

"It isn't one of yours actually; we built it ourselves." explained Torque, "I scavenged many fragments from your mechs during your first outing on Avalice last year. We studied the fragments and duplicated the tech used to make them and we've made our own battle mechs to combat you! For once Brevon, we're on equal terms!"

**"We'll see about that commander." **Brevon growled angrily, **"You may have duplicated my own tech, but nothing compares to the originals!" **

"Go on Torque! Show that monster what our new weapon can do!" cried Terra, "Kick his ass into the next solar-system!"

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do this…" muttered Torque, "This is for my deceased captain!" he yelled at his nemesis.

He followed his sentence with a terrific uppercut to the "head" section of Brevon's mech. Brevon's mech hurled backwards, spinning in a backwards somersault as he lost control. The gravelly-voiced alien regained his balance and decided to switch tactics. Hovering in space, he knew that Torque just had an easier time knocking him around so he needed somewhere to place his mech. And he decided to place it on top of the escape pod Terra had been using to escape. The four clawed feet of the mech grabbed hold of the pod, keeping the mech fixed down in place and preventing him from floating away. Torque touched down on the pod after Brevon, already throwing another punch at his hated enemy. For too long this madman had killed innocent people, brave heroes and determined fighters. He was going to put an end to him at last. But as he threw his punch, Brevon blocked the attack. Torque's heavy metal fist slammed on Brevon's metal arm. The warlord could feel the weight of Torque's fist on his arm. He had definitely duplicated his tech well; the mech was as powerful as it should be. He would have to finish the fight as soon as possible otherwise Torque could turn the fight well into his favour.

Brevon swung his mech's arm up, throwing Torque's mech backwards as its arm was thrown upwards. Torque's mech staggered slightly but he regained balance just before he could drift off of the escape pod. But as he regained his position, Brevon's mech deployed its cannon hands and blasted at Torque's mech. The shots slammed like hailstones into the mech's tough body, making Torque gasp in surprise at how heavily they fell on him. Even the mech's heavily armoured hide couldn't seem to soften the blows. But Torque wasn't fazed by the shots. He straightened up and deployed his mech's weapons. The hands of the mech became cannons and he shot at Brevon's mech, aiming straight at the two front legs. The blasts slammed into the legs, nearly breaking them clean off and making Brevon's mech sway alarmingly. Smirking, Torque fired again at Brevon's front legs. But the warlord shot at the laser blasts heading towards him to stop the shots from destroying the mechs. With only two legs, he would be poorly balanced. His mech needed all four to balance perfectly. Brevon used his mech's legs to carry the metal bodysuit towards Torque and he deployed a pair of chainsaws, one out of each wrist section. Torque had expected something like this so he deployed the blades to his own mech to combat the saws. The blades were about five inches thick and very sharp. With a single swish, Torque could slice another mech's leg off. Brevon swung the chainsaws down towards Torque's shoulders, intending to slice the arms off. Torque blocked the blows with his blades, sparks showering over him as the saws churned away at the solid blades. The weapons withstood the attack and Torque swiped his arms aside, throwing Brevon's arms aside at the same time and leaving him vulnerable to attack. Torque's mech lunged forward with its heavy blades, stabbing at the mid-section of Brevon's mech. The blades plunged straight into the mid-section. Brevon glanced down at his mech's middle area and growled angrily at the sight of his enemy's weapons impaling it.

**"Lucky shot commander." **he growled viciously, **"But that won't finish me off!"**

He then swung the chainsaw arms down onto Torque's shoulders. The vicious weapons buzzed loudly as they churned away at the solid metal on the mech's shoulders. Sparks danced crazily above Torque's head. The green-skinned commander knew that he couldn't keep this position forever or Brevon would cut his mech's arms off. He acted desperately in order to save himself. He slashed upwards, tearing huge slits through the torso section of the mech. The mech now looked like it somebody had dug their fingers into it and drawn down the metal. Brevon had been very lucky for as Torque had slashed upwards, his blades nearly cut through his legs. They had missed the villain's legs by millimetres. Torque then tilted backwards so he could raise his mech's leg and drive it hard into his enemy's mid-section. The mech's heavy foot slammed hard into Brevon's mech. Brevon's entire upper-body jerked backwards awkwardly, bringing the two front legs up off the pod for a moment as he fought for balance. He steadied himself only for Torque to then slash at the torso section again. Growling angrily, Brevon slashed at Torque's mech with his chainsaws. The Chaser commander was actually putting up a good fight for once. Brevon had never experienced that before. The warlord blamed Avalice and its heroines for that. They had clearly raised his spirits with their victory over him last year. Because of them, Torque was more confident in this battle than he had been in any other fight. All the more reason for his fleet to destroy Avalice should it eventually get past Torque's hideous fleet. Brevon placed his chainsaws against the shoulder sections of Torque's mech. They already had hideous scars on where they had been cutting moments ago and now Brevon was deepening them. Torque swung the blades upwards and slashed at Brevon's arms, nearly cutting them clean off in the process. The lord decided it might be wise to keep his arms away from Torque's blades if he was to keep them.

He switched the mech's chainsaws to cannons and pointed them at Torque's mech. Unfortunately for him, Torque had done the same thing. Both mechs shot at each other, not caring about the dangerous fact that they were much too close to each other to be shooting powerful cannon blasts at each other. The shots crashed into each other, imploding and throwing the two mechs off the escape pod with a massive shockwave. Torque screamed and Brevon let out a cross between a yell and a snarl as both mechs spiralled away into space. The clawed feet of his four-legged arsenal had torn chunks off of the escape pod as he had been shoved away from it. Despite what had happened, Brevon recovered unusually quickly and activated his back-mounted jets. The demonic tyrant hurled towards Torque like a monster out of his worst nightmare. The mech's hands were now deployed with its four razor sharp claws bared and ready to grab Torque. The Chaser aimed his cannons at Brevon but the mech's hands closed around his wrists and shoved the cannons upwards, causing Torque to fire up at empty space. Brevon then tightened his mech's grip on the Chaser's mech, denting the arms millimetre by millimetre as extra pressure was applied onto them. Torque kicked frantically at Brevon's mech, trying to get free but it was no use. Brevon's mech was too strong for him. Lord Brevon grinned a devilish grin of triumph. In this position, he could tear Torque's arms off in a single movement.

**"Well fought commander, but this conflict once again, ends in MY favour." **he crowed, **"I'll be sure to let your pathetic animal friends on the planet behind you know that you died honourably."**

"When are you gonna learn to stop claiming victory before you actually win?" snorted Torque.

Brevon's face contorted with loathing and he stabbed down at the buttons on his control panel. His mech's hands tightened their grip even further and then the arms began to spread out, pulling on the enemy mech's arms. Torque's head rained with sweat. Brevon would tear his arms off and leave him defenceless! But he had a sure fire ace up his sleeve to ensure that wouldn't happen. As expected, Terra came to his rescue. She had been fighting with Serpentine while he had been fighting Brevon but she had been spared a moment to help her best friend. She rocketed towards her villainous opponent and aimed the pistols at the mech's elbow joints.

"Nobody dares harm my best friend!" Terra snarled.

She then blasted at the orange-coated mech's elbow joints. Experience and mentoring had told her that they were weak spots on a mech too. The powerful shots slammed on the battle mech's arms, forcing Brevon to let go of Torque in order to keep his mech from losing its lower arms to Terra. Now free, Torque pointed the cannons at Brevon and blasted him directly in the "head" section. Brevon was propelled backwards by the powerful blast, somersaulting over and over as he wheeled away. He was sent flying backwards for a good distance before he finally regained his balance. Torque glanced up at Terra and gave her a thumbs up from inside the cockpit.

"Good save Agent!" he cried.

"Thanks Torque." Terra beamed delightedly, "You save my life, I save yours. That's how Chasers work baby!"

"And that's why we've always managed to survive despite the losses we've endured over time." Torque agreed, "Now let's end this fight."

"I'll continue keeping Serpentine off your back commander, you just beat the crap out of Lord Rusty-Pants for me!" exclaimed Terra.

"I intend to my friend." said Torque grimly.

His eyes fixed on his approaching opponent, Torque fired his mech's jets and hurled towards Brevon like a whizzing arrow. Terra boosted towards Serpentine, her guns aimed straight at the general's shoulder cannons once again. Both Chasers and Villains began closing the distance between them, ready to continue their battles. If Avalice had any idea on what was happening just miles above, the inhabitants would be utterly spell-bound as mechs clashed and guns were fired. As Torque and Brevon flew towards each other, they both drew their mech's arms back, ready to launch a powerful punch at each other's cockpit windows…

* * *

><p><em><strong>This is getting intense isn't it? Lilac and friends: crushed to death? Torque: will he win the fight? Natalya: Is it too late to stop her? Find out next time...<strong>_


	5. Chapter 4: The Dark Stone

_Chapter 4: The Dark Stone _

Down below the kingdom of Shang Tu, the drainage tunnels were beginning to cave in. Natalya the Lead Scarf and her Red Scarves had set up bombs in strategic areas around the tunnels in order to bring the ceiling down and block the tunnels forever. Upon freeing the Scarves from the Royal Palace dungeon, Natalya had taken the whole group back to their hideout and gathered up any belongings and treasures that they could carry over to Shang Mu for their new hideout. Natalya refused to relocate without the Scarves's most valuable steals for she liked to display her group's biggest achievements in thievery to give the Scarves something to be proud of every time they walked around the hideout. Sadly, the crime boss had been unable to bring her throne. It would have been too cumbersome to carry and would have looked way too conspicuous so Natalya had reluctantly left it behind. Once the lair had been deprived of all treasures, the Red Scarves had fled the tunnels and emerged up to the surface above, making their way over to Shang Mu. Spade had stayed behind to detonate the bombs. Natalya wanted the tunnels destroyed in hopes of causing trouble for Shang Tu up above. With the tunnels blocked and caved in, the drains could block up and cause potential floods for Shang Tu and with any luck, some houses might collapse in on themselves if enough damage was done. Shang Tu deserved this for ruining the name of the Red Scarves. They had stricken back one last time in order to end their lives in Shang Tu on a high note, and they had stricken back heavily.

The bombs had been detonated and now the ceilings all over the tunnels were beginning to crumble down like hail in a bad storm. The bombs had been placed all over on the way to the Royal Palace, explaining how the Red Scarves had managed to collect their belonging and get out so quickly. Now they had gone off, causing havoc through the drainage tunnels. Fire had started in some areas and huge piles of rubble had built up in many tunnels with more piles threatening to build up as the damage continued escalating. Lilac the Dragon Girl and her friends had been unfortunate enough to be in the tunnels at the time of the detonations. They were in Natalya's lair and were hopelessly trapped. There was fire and smoke outside the room and the ceiling was beginning to crumble down. With no way out, Lilac and friends had gathered together in a group hug to allow themselves one last moment of joy before they were crushed to death in the cave-in. But one of the Avalicians wasn't ready to die yet.

"NO!" yelled Milla.

She broke free of the hug and held up her hands quickly. Then, as if by magic, a green energy block appeared above her head and she extended it up a little. Huge piles of brick, mortar and rock rained down on the shield but Milla held firm. Straining heavily, she willed herself to keep her arms raised so the shield could keep her friends safe. It was like using a giant umbrella to shelter her friends from the rain. Only it was more like a heavy hailstorm than rain. Lilac and Carol gasped in amazement. They knew Milla had shield powers but they hadn't expected the puppy to summon a shield that big and use it to hold back a cave-in. The trouble was, would the child hold it? Or would she give-in and thus, render her efforts useless in the end? Lilac, Carol, Miguel and Lela watched nervously as Milla strained to keep her shield aloft. Her strength was fading but the hound refused to give in. Grunting loudly, Milla tilted the shield to one side and allowed the debris to roll harmlessly away from her friends. She let out a long, loud sigh of relief as the shield disappeared and her strength was given a precious moment to rest. She caught her breath again shortly after and then began to cheer delightedly. It was as if she had just done the most amazing thing in the world.

"I did it! I did it! I saved our lives!" squealed Milla excitedly, "Yippee! I'm a hero!"

"Heroine dear, you're a heroine." said Lela softly, embracing her daughter gratefully, "Oh my brave, brilliant little girl! You were amazing! Well done Milla!"

"Thanks mommy." said Milla graciously.

"You know, I'm getting a weird sense of déjà vu around here." giggled Carol, "Didn't Milla save ME from a cave-in last year?"

"Darn straight!" chuckled Lilac, "Now she's saved our lives from a cave-in this year. Just you wait, she'll save us from a cave-in next year too!"

"I hope not." muttered Miguel, "There might be a time where not even Milla can save us from a cave-in if we get caught up in one next time. Still, I couldn't be prouder of my sweet little Milla." he said kindly, stroking his daughter's hair.

Milla beamed. She loved being praised for her heroic deeds. It made her feel very appreciated and loved, a feeling she enjoyed feeling.

"OK we've been saved from being crushed, so how will we get past the fire outside?" asked Carol curiously.

"Maybe I can help with that too." suggested Milla.

"I don't think so." said Lilac doubtfully, "You can sweep a shield through the fire yes but I don't think it would stop the fire or put it out. And even then, the tunnels will likely be blocked for I'm pretty sure it wasn't just this place that's falling down on our heads. There's gotta be another way out."

"How about straight up?" asked Lela, pointing up at the now non-existent ceiling up above.

Everybody glanced up at the giant hole that had once been in a ceiling and to their delight, they saw daylight up above. The ceiling had caved in so much that the Avalicians had a straight tunnel up to freedom. It would be like climbing up a chimney only without any smoke or fire beneath them.

"Hey, well spotted Mrs. Basset!" cried Lilac joyfully, "We can get out that way!"

"Indeed so, and since me and Milla can fly, we can carry you all up out of here." said Lela happily.

"You can fly too?" asked Carol, not sounding too surprised, "I guess that's where Milla got her flying abilities from. I suppose you have shields too."

"Oh no, me and Miguel don't have powers ourselves." said Lela, shaking her head, "I can only fly and that's about it. Miguel's ears aren't long enough for flying, unfortunately for him. I'm not sure how Milla came to possess those shield powers when she was born. I guess she's just that special a child." she added, beaming at Milla as if she was the greatest treasure ever uncovered.

"She certainly is." agreed Lilac.

Milla blushed with pleasure. All this praise she was getting was making her feel grand. She truly had made her friends very happy and she was pleased to be bringing so much joy to her parents and two best friends. With nothing more to add, Milla flapped her ears and arms and began to ascend up into the air. As soon as her feet were above Lilac and Carol's heads, they grabbed onto her ankles and the puppy took off with them holding on tightly to her. They were a little heavy and Milla had to flap quite vigorously in order to make sure she didn't fall back down. But like with her shield powers, Milla displayed amazing strength in her flying. She lifted Lilac and Carol off the floor and headed up through the hole above their heads. As Milla flew, Lilac glanced down at the scroll wrapped under her arm. Amazingly, it had survived the whole ordeal and she had decided to take it with her. It could come in handy.

Lela wrapped her arms around Miguel and flapped her ears. Being older, she found it easier to fly than Milla did so she didn't need her arms to aid her ears. The two hounds flew up through the funnel, taking care not to bump into anything protruding from the sides as they took the sweet flight to freedom. Milla then suddenly began to slow down. She was wearing out a little and wanted desperately to touch down and have a rest. Saving everybody from the cave-in had still left her a little exhausted and she hadn't fully regained her strength yet. But the dog refused to give up. She wasn't going to let Lilac and Carol down, in more ways than one. She flapped her arms and ears harder, so hard in fact that the dragon and cat below her worried she was going to shake them off. Milla puffed and panted with effort but she pushed herself one last metre up through the funnel and was rewarded with bright sunshine and fresh air at last. She had made it at last. They were free from the tunnels and back out into open air. Milla touched down on the ground and collapsed onto her back, gasping and panting for breath. Lilac and Carol knelt beside her while waiting for Lela and Miguel. The dragon girl looked around curiously.

Upon ascending out of Natalya's throne room, they had arrived a few yards away from the Royal Palace. Lilac could still see it, the top of the palace visible above the rest of the city around them. She could also see that some holes had formed in the roads and pavements all over Shang Tu. A few houses had started to tilt sideways a little, threatening to collapse on top of anybody foolish enough to be in their way. Some of the holes weren't too bad but there were some that were so big it would take ages to fill in. The houses would definitely take a while to fix and straighten up again. Natalya had done some damage to the city, that much was certain. But if her throne room had been booby-trapped for her and her friends then why was the rest of Shang Tu stricken? Had Natalya decided to spite the Magister by causing collateral damage in his city? It all made sense now. The Magister wouldn't be hunting down Natalya; he would instead be focusing on fixing the damages done to Shang Tu, allowing her to make a quick getaway! The dragon truly was a genius. Lilac herself would never have thought up a getaway so clever. It made Lilac burn with anger. Natalya had played them all like saps. She had pulled the strings perfectly and now she was getting away with the Red Scarves. They were probably out of Shang Tu right now and heading to goodness knows where. Right from the start, Lilac had had no chance of catching Natalya, and that made her really cross with herself. She had been reckless and what had it done to her? Just make it easier for Natalya to get away and bring her and her friends into her trap! Some Heroine of Avalice she was shaping up to be! She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of Lela emerging from the hole and touching down with Miguel in her arms.

"Have I ever told you how much I enjoy being carried by you while you're flying darling?" purred Miguel.

"Yes honey, you have." laughed Lela.

"Well done Mrs. Basset and Milla." said Lilac brightly, "Now we're free, we can report to the Magister and let him know that we've failed."

"He is NOT going to be happy." muttered Carol, folding her arms and frowning, "Stupid Natalya, outwitting us like this…"

"I know. And I should have known that she would be too smart for us." sighed Lilac, "But I was blind-sided by my recklessness. Because of me, she's gotten away and Shang Tu's paid the price for it. With all these holes in the roads and the drainage tunnels destroyed, Shang Tu can't possibly hunt down the Red Scarves. They've got wanton destruction to fix. I should have been smarter but instead I rushed in there and alerted her to our presence. And not only that, I almost got us killed with my rash actions. That is inexcusable. I'm deeply sorry my friends…I…I truly am. It's all my fault we've failed and we almost died. I'm so sorry…"

She then turned away from her friends as if unable to face them any longer and she hugged herself. Feeling pity for the dragon, Carol walked up to her and gently placed her hands on the girl's shoulders.

"Aww Lilac, don't beat yourself up like that." said Carol softly, "It may have been your fault yes but you didn't mean for this to happen. It was a mistake, we all make them. But we're alive so don't worry about it. We were never gonna die anyway, just look what Milla did. And because we're alive, you have the chance to make up for that mistake. Remember those words of wisdom we heard in a movie once?"

"Failure can lead to success in the future…yes, I remember." said Lilac, feeling a little happier, "I've made a mistake now, but next time we meet Natalya, our failure can become a success. Natalya herself is a woman who doesn't repeat her mistakes. So maybe I can learn something from her for a change."

"I smell irony!" giggled Carol in a sing-song voice, playfully nudging her best friend.

"Yeah, I do too!" Lilac laughed in return, "Bet she's gonna feel really miffed when I end up using her own words of wisdom against her! Ha, ha, ha!"

"We'll have to find her first." noted Miguel, "And she could be anywhere at this point in time. Where do we start looking?"

"Well…I saved this." the teen-dragon announced, showing the scroll that she had taken with her from Natalya's lair, "It could give us a clue on where she'll be going if this thing's about a treasure she's planning on finding or stealing or whatever. Maybe the Magister can translate it for us."

"Isn't it odd how you're a dragon and yet you can't read dragon language?" asked Carol quizzically.

"Which part of "it's a dead language and therefore, I've not learnt it" did you not understand?" snapped Lilac, "I only know about Draconian language because my parents told me about it once. I know the language when I see it, but I've never learnt it. I didn't see the point of learning a dead language. Why learn it if we don't speak it anymore?"

"And yet Little Miss Creepypants learnt it and look what that's got her, a bunch of treasures from ancient dragon history." the feline snorted, "I remember how she boasted about some of those treasures came from that long ago to us when we were still her disciples. If you'd learnt Draconian, you'd be able to read that thing Lilac."

"Yeah…maybe I should have learnt it after all." the reptilian Avalician murmured, "Never mind, let's see if there's somebody who CAN read this thing. Maybe we'll find out where that gem in the picture is and set-up an ambush for the Red Scarves. For once, WE are a step ahead of them."

"But Lilac dear, don't you think it's a little obfuscating that Natalya just conveniently left those scrolls behind when she took everything else?" asked Lela worriedly, "Do you think she _wanted_ you to find it and therefore, lead you into another trap?"

"Yes…maybe that's why…" Lilac murmured. But then suddenly, her mind went click and she realized something that finally made sense about the whole ordeal.

"But she blew up the tunnels." she noted, "And I'm getting a sneaky suspicion that the tunnels blowing up was NOT meant as a trap for us. Remember how she blocked one of the tunnels after escaping? She didn't want us to follow her and clearly didn't expect us to get through. I think we just stumbled into the lair's destruction by accident. Her intentions were clearly to damage Shang Tu as evidenced by the damage around us. The bombs must have been set-up before we even got here so Natalya can't have been expecting me to find the scroll and take it. I guess us being killed was just a consolation prize for her and we would have given her that honour had Milla not saved our lives. So no, this can't be another trap. Natalya wanted the scrolls destroyed along with the lair. That's why they were left behind." she deducted.

"Very well noted." Miguel gasped, "And very logical too. You're quite a smart girl when you want to be."

"Thanks Mr. Basset." said Lilac modestly, "Pity I'm only smart when I'm not trying to kick somebody's face in. Maybe "think first, act later" is a tactic I should use more often…"

"When we find the Queen of Creepiness and her loyal pawns, maybe you can try it." said Carol with a wink, "Come on then, let's see his Royal Facelessness and show him that scroll."

Lilac nodded agreeably and immediately headed off to the Royal Palace. The cat and dogs followed her closely behind. As they headed to the palace, Lilac glanced at the scroll again. What was the gem in the picture? And was it a powerful gem like the Kingdom Stone was? And would its power be good…or bad…?

* * *

><p>Lilac would later consider herself lucky she didn't have other matters to worry about, such as what was going on hundreds of miles above her own planet.<p>

The big battle with Torque, Terra, Brevon and Serpentine was continuing to get more and more hectic the longer it continued. The weightless battlefield was full of giant mechs swinging weapons and throwing punches and guns firing in every direction. And as if that wasn't enough, there was a fleet fight going on just yards away from the double fights going on. Unlike the double fights though, the fleet fight was more one-sided. The Chaser fleet's shields still hadn't been penetrated yet and Brevon's fleet was shrinking in numbers minute by minute. The insidious fleet had lost two more ships while Brevon had been fighting with Torque and now the sabotaged Dreadnought was coming dangerously close to blowing apart. Torque's flagship fired relentlessly at the unshielded vessel, the blasts tearing into the armour effortlessly and throwing debris in all directions. On-board the Dreadnought, Syntax was desperately trying to get the ship's power back online but the damage was getting ever greater as the ship continued to fire.

The Dreadnought rocked uneasily as it was hammered by yet another round of laser fire. It was like being stuffed into a bottle and shook around violently. Syntax tapped into the Dreadnought's main computer systems and studied the damage levels. Being a robotic A.I., she could make calculations in seconds and very shortly, she would come up with a conclusion on what to do next. As she studied the damage levels that the ship's computers were displaying, she knew that the battle had been lost. The Dreadnought's status was beginning to get critical. Even if they got the power back on now, it wouldn't do any good. The Dreadnought's shields had been damaged by the heavy firepower it was being bombarded by. There was no chance of victory now, the invasion of Avalice was a failure. And it hadn't even begun yet! They had arrived at Avalice and already they had been stopped! Lord Brevon was definitely losing his touch. All this careful planning swiftly sullied by a simple Chaser spying on him, undetected no less! Maybe Lilac defeating him had affected him badly after all? The robotic servant supposed Brevon would be furious with how his beautiful plan had failed so spectacularly. Never had a plan of Brevon's gone so horribly wrong before. And as emotionless as she was, Syntax wasn't too keen with the turn out of the ensuing battle. As the Dreadnought was stricken again, the fem-bot made her decision. Like it or not, Brevon's fleet would have to retreat. She would go out and retrieve Brevon and Serpentine and bring them into an escape pod so they could make it back to their home world. Syntax turned to the crew of the Dreadnought.

"Attention troops. It may distress you to know that we are in critical danger." she reported, no emotion mixed with her voice at all, "The Dreadnought is severely damaged. Our shields are amongst the damages inflicted on the ship. Getting the power back on is pointless. This ship will be destroyed in approximately...two minutes. We have no chance of victory now, especially as we're losing more and more of our fleet and our flagship is nearly destroyed. We must retreat before we lose anymore ships and men."

"I agree on that!" yelped one of Brevon's soldiers, "We'll take the escape pods and get going pronto!"

"Set the coordinates for our home world." ordered Syntax, "I will take one of our remaining ships and retrieve our master."

The soldiers did not wait to be asked twice. Whether Brevon would like it or not, retreating was the best option now. Better to walk away wounded then never at all, that was their reasoning of the situation. The crew all abandoned the cockpit and made for the escape pods instantly. Syntax quickly tapped into the remaining ships in Brevon's fleet and sent out an evacuation message, telling them all to turn around and head for home except for one. Not every ship received the message as yet two more ships were obliterated by Torque's fleet. The survivors got the message and quickly saw to getting their ships moving and away from the fight. Only one remained and Syntax teleported on-board the remaining ship so she could order the crew to steer it towards the mech fight going on outside. What an embarrassing defeat it was for the once unbeatable army. They had conquered worlds and sent many heroes to their graves. Now, they hadn't even got anywhere near Avalice, nor even past a fleet of ships. But next time they came to Avalice, they wouldn't be taken out so easily. They would come back stronger and they would be on the lookout for spies and infiltrators to make sure that they were never sabotaged again. As Syntax arrived on-board the remaining vessel, she gave the order.

"Take us towards the fight over there." she droned, pointing ahead, "We must retrieve our master and bring him aboard so he can retreat too."

The crew nodded and they put the ship into motion. Dials were turned as they prepared to move forwards. Then the ship began to dip down a little, now pointing directly at the fight going on up ahead. Then the ship boosted up its rockets and began to head towards the fight. To make sure Torque's fleet wouldn't shoot at it, the crew activated the ship's cloaking device. The entire fleet had a cloaking device but they hadn't been used for nobody expected to suddenly be under attack. Syntax would just have to hope that Torque's fleet didn't have heat-sensors otherwise they would be blown to pieces. It seemed to work for Torque's fleet didn't aim any cannons at the invisible ship. It was still firing at the doomed Dreadnought and hoping to snag any of the retreating ships. It was clear that the foolish Chasers onboard hadn't seen, nor detected the invisible ship heading towards Brevon and Serpentine. The two would be retrieved and taken back home safely and they would have no idea. Once again, the green skinned alien would slip through their fingers. They may have won the fight but they wouldn't be getting the honour of arresting or killing Brevon today.

Lord Brevon himself was completely unaware of his fleeing fleet. All he was bothered about was the impudent Chaser he was locked in heavy combat with. He snarled wildly as his mech threw a terrific punch at the "head" section of Torque's mech. All his anger and rage were concentrated into his mech's attacks as if the mech was fuelled by fury itself. The punch slammed hard into the head section, throwing Torque's mech backwards away from the escape pod he and Brevon were perched upon. They had landed back on it so they could be more balanced in their fighting once again. The zero gravity of space carried him away in a slow, gentle spiral but Torque used the jets in the back of his mech to steady himself. He deployed his mech's arm cannons and pointed them directly at the warlord's battle machine. Despite the forearms being damaged earlier, the weapons still seemed to work. The Chaser's machine fired at Brevon's the blasts slamming hard like heavy fists on solid wood and Brevon cried out as his mech nearly lost its balance and toppled over. Brevon thought to regain balance by thrusting his arms forward. It worked. The mech regained balance and its four clawed feet held on tightly as Brevon prepared to attack again. Torque landed back on the escape pod, aiming the cannons at his hated enemy and preparing to fire.

"Why do you persist in this bloody carnage?!" cried Torque, "Why do you strive to conquer worlds? Why can't you see that all you've done is bring pain and misery to yourself and others! Your home world's still in danger and causing suffering to other worlds isn't going to save it! And remember, more people are rebelling against you now Brevon! Soon, nobody will fear your name anymore and you'll just cause more strife for yourself! Why do you still persist in this pointless charade?!"

**"Because the only way you get anywhere in life is through conquest." **Brevon growled menacingly, **"My skills are utterly wasted on pointless things like morality and decency. My skills need to be used to their full potential. And as for people rebelling against me, let's see how much they'll stand up to me when I destroy the one world that's been filling them with false hope of ever defeating me! With Avalice gone, things will be back to the way they were...with me on top and you irritating Chasers barely able to stand up against me!"**

"So you think life is just about death and destruction?!" the Chaser screamed angrily.

**"Death for my enemies and destruction for their armies!" **the alien overlord retorted.

"In that case there's no hope for you Brevon...and that makes me sad." Torque sighed despairingly, "I really hoped you could see just how wrong your way of life is. Guess that isn't happening anytime soon."

**"Enough talk! Let's finish this fight so that I may commence with my invasion of that insipid planet behind you!" **Brevon growled.

Torque seemed a little too happy to oblige. Given how unwilling to listen to reason Lord Brevon was, Torque had no qualms against beating the tar out of him anymore. He supposed it wouldn't matter too much if Brevon was killed in battle either. It would be his own fault in the grand scheme of things. The Chaser raised his bulky, mechanical arms and swung them down towards the "head" section of Brevon's mechanical fighter. The orange coloured mech shielded itself with its arms held an X-shape, taking the full force of the attack and giving Brevon the perfect opportunity to throw Torque's arms upwards and leave him vulnerable. Before the alien commander could defend himself, Brevon lunged at Torque and wrapped his huge metal arms around the heavily armoured body of his opponent's mech. Brevon lifted Torque straight up off the escape pod and then began to apply pressure on the mech. He was intending to crush Torque's machine with a metal crushing bear-hug.

Torque could feel the metal straining in protest against the pressure that was being applied on it. He was very frightened. Brevon would squash him like a bug if he couldn't break free right now. Frantically, he pulled on the levers and tried to make his mech spread out is arms and break free of the hug. But Brevon's mech was too strong. Torque's mech could only feebly push against its opponent's arms but that was it. He barely even budged the other mech's appendages. But Torque suddenly had an idea. His mech's arms couldn't break free, but he could still use the weapons on Brevon's mech. Thinking fast, he deployed the cannons and aimed at the front two feet of Brevon's combat machine and fired. The blasts smashed into the feet, destroying them instantly and leaving his insidious opponent with just two feet to stand on. The stumps that remained of the front two feet were not adequate for balance and grip at all. Brevon could feel the weightless force around him lifting his mech up of its front legs. Startled, he released Torque and fought for balance, giving his good-natured opponent the perfect opportunity to shoot him in the torso and send him hurling away from the escape pod. The back feet tore off chunks of metal as the mech was sent hurtling away. Brevon let out a startled scream as he was sent somersaulting backwards. Torque activated his jets and flew after his nemesis, keen to end the fight before it could go on any longer.

Serpentine watched as the fight seemed to slip into Torque's control. Not wanting his master to suffer another humiliating defeat, he flew towards him so he could help his lord defeat Torque. But just as he began flying off, Terra aimed her pistols at the back of the snake's mech and fired at him. She aimed at the jet engines, hoping to destroy them and render him a sitting duck. Serpentine yelped as he was hammered from behind by heavy pistol shots and he spun his mech around to aim his shoulder cannons at the obnoxious girl that refused to let him be.

"WILL YOU STOP SHOOTING AT ME YOU IRRITATING LITTLE BRAT?!" he bellowed, his voice teeming with annoyance.

Terra didn't respond as she weaved around the laser blasts, dodging each one with ease as her jet boots kicked into gear. Terra then aimed at Serpentine's shoulder cannons and fired at them, hoping to destroy them and render him defenceless. She had already destroyed his claws so the shoulder cannons were all the abrasive general had left. The she-Chaser fired but the shots weren't quite strong enough to destroy the shoulder cannons. Terra gritted her teeth as she fired. She would destroy them eventually but she knew Serpentine wouldn't give her the chance. How could she destroy the cannons if the cyborg snake wouldn't give her the chance to do so? Terra considered herself lucky that she was able to think and fight simultaneously or she would be in a bit of a pickle at this moment. As she unleashed another volley of shots at the obnoxious reptile in the mech-suit, Terra thought desperately on how to destroy the general's shoulder cannons. Then suddenly, an idea sprang into her mind. The Chaser considered it very briefly. It was very risky and might not even work, but it was worth a shot.

Terra stopped shooting at Serpentine just long enough to aim her legs out backwards and boost towards him. She whizzed through space like a flying rocket. Serpentine only just had enough time to acknowledge that his opponent was coming towards him before Terra raised her feet and allowed the fumes of her jet boots hit him in the cockpit window. As well protected as Serpentine was, he could still feel the heat of the fumes on his windscreen. If Terra thought she could burn her way through his windscreen then the girl was sorely mistaken! The windscreen could withstand blaster fire from the Chaser's twin pistols so what chance did fumes from jet boots have of penetrating him? But then suddenly, the fumes stopped and Serpentine was met with a rather surprising sight. Or rather, nothing but space for Terra had mysteriously disappeared! The snake pressed his face up against the cockpit window in surprise.

"WHAT?! WHERE'D SHE GO?!" he yelped frantically.

He soon received his answer as a rather acerbic blow from behind slammed into his mech's shoulders. The snake yelped in surprise and looked around frantically to see what was happening. The head of his mech was a dome with clear glass so he could look all around him. What he saw next made his heart stop. His eyes widened in shock as two long tubes with broken ends began drifting away from his mech and into his field of vision. The shoulder cannons had just been broken off! Terra had flown directly upwards, the fumes of her boots distracting Serpentine so he didn't see where she went and thus, the Chaser had flown behind him and then blasted the shoulder cannons at their weakest spot, the connecting rods themselves. Lessons in weak spots had taught her that vital piece of information too. Terra punched upwards in triumph.

"HELL YEAH! Bull's-eye! Ha, ha, ha!" she crowed, "In your face snake man!"

Serpentine's response was to spin around and swing his metal arm at the Chaser. The turquoise alien yelped in fright and quickly dodged before she could be taken out. But that had just lowered her down enough for Serpentine to swing one of his legs up and wallop Terra full on, heavy metal colliding violently with flesh and bone. Terra let out a hoarse gasp as the wind was knocked out of her. The alien drifted away, unsure of what had just happened. She managed to get her breath back though with merely an air helmet to provide it for her, Terra knew she couldn't let herself get winded too much or she'd lose too much air to retrieve. She relaxed her breathing and flew back into the fight, shooting at Serpentine once again. Serpentine defended himself with his stumpy arms and just as Terra closed in, he swung his arm and walloped Terra in the side. This sent the female alien flying through the endless void and straight towards Torque and Brevon.

The two heavyweight mechs had deployed their blades and chainsaws respectively and were swinging them violently at each other. Static blade and screaming chainsaw clashed, sending sparks flying in every direction as the sharp weapons made contact. The Chaser and Warlord crossed blades at face level and pushed on each other's arms, trying to force one another backwards. Torque won the struggle by kicking Brevon in the midsection. Just as the orange machine doubled over, Torque plunged both his blades into Brevon's shoulders and sliced upwards. The mech's arms fell straight off as a result of the attack. The red-eyed fiend let out a roar of anger as his mech's arms fell uselessly away, drifting off into an endless black all around him. He had lost the battle and had no choice but to flee. How could he possibly win without arms now? Growling furiously, Brevon turned his mech around and quickly activated the jets. The fumes burnt brilliantly behind him as they pushed the mech away from the fight. Serpentine saw what Brevon was doing and he decided to follow him. If his master was retreating then chances are, it was wise he did so too. Torque was about to fly after them but he was stopped as he saw Terra drifting towards him, looking a little hurt. His mech carried him towards the young girl and he caught her in his mechanical hands. Terra was still breathing and still conscious but she looked to be in pain.

"Terra! You OK?" asked Torque worriedly.

"My everything hurts…" the fem-Chaser moaned, "But I'll live."

"Thank goodness." said Torque with a sigh, "It looks like we've won Terra. For once. Brevon's fleeing and it looks as if his fleet's gone."

He and Terra looked out into the stars to find that there was nothing left of Brevon's fleet except for the debris of any destroyed ships that failed to get away. The Dreadnought itself had just been destroyed, a sea of debris marking where it had once stood. The ship had been destroyed just shortly before Torque had cut Brevon's arms off. Terra smiled weakly.

"Finally…we actually beat the asshole for once!" she croaked.

"I'll say we did." said Torque, a pleasant feeling spreading through his body, "It feels good to beat him for once. Pity he's gotten away again." He sighed.

"Sorry…" said Terra apologetically, believing that it was her fault Brevon had gotten away.

"It's OK Terra." said Torque kindly, "It's not your fault you got hurt."

"It kinda is really." the turquoise alien muttered, "I gloated at Serpentine after I destroyed his shoulder cannons and thus…he was able to hit me. I'm sorry for my foolishness commander. I won't do it again."

"You'll deal with that hot-headedness eventually Terra." the Chaser Commander replied, "For now, please be more careful. I…I can't bear to lose you." he added, a heavy tone accompanying his words as he spoke.

"I will." Terra replied, "For you buddy. So…shall we give the crew the good news?"

"Oh yes." said Torque brightly.

He then proceeded to fly off, still cradling Terra in his arms, and he headed back towards his victorious fleet. What a success the cancelling of Brevon's invasion had been! He could hardly wait to hear what his crew were going to say. But Torque had no idea on how far from over the invasion really was. For directly underneath the fleet's noses, an invisible ship sailed past and headed straight towards Avalice. This was the remaining ship Syntax had taken to pick-up Lord Brevon and now he was on board, he was taking command. And he was still intent on invading Avalice, even with this one ship and dozens of crew members on-board. A fleet or one ship, it didn't matter. He wanted his invasion, and he was going to get it…

* * *

><p>"…reports are coming in your excellency! It seems that most of the city has been damaged by some kind of attack underground!" General Gong reported, his hand to his head in the usual salute he adopted when in his master's presence, "Many buildings have leaned aside thanks to this unforeseen attack and the roads are damaged beyond belief! We'll not be able to use them for a while! Everybody's scared Magister! They're worried their homes are gonna fall over and break!"<p>

"We must get the civilians evacuated so we can begin cleaning up the mess that's been caused by…whatever just happened." added Neera Li.

She and the general had woken up just shortly after Lilac and friends had chased Natalya down into the drainage tunnels. They had been horrified to see that the dungeon cells were completely empty, meaning that they had failed their tasks to keep the Red Scarves locked up and Natalya had gotten away. They had been about to report to the Magister but then something terrible had happened down underneath the city of Shang Tu itself and now a lot of damage had been done to the roads and buildings all around. It looked as if a heavy earthquake had hit the city, which was impossible as Shang Tu wasn't an earthquake zone. And neither were its neighbouring kingdoms. They had no idea what had happened but they knew that it meant one thing: they couldn't chase after Natalya with Shang Tu in such a terrible state. They had to stay where they were and begin contributing to the repairing of Shang Tu. They had given their report to the Magister and the shrouded ruler put a finger to his concealed face in wonder. He did not like what he had been hearing at all. This was the worst thing that had ever happened to Shang Tu in the kingdom's history. Even worse than the time Mayor Zao had desecrated his temple to steal the Kingdom Stone as par Lord Brevon's manipulations last year. The Magister shook his head sadly, disturbed by what had happened to his beloved kingdom.

"This is troubling…a random disaster strikes our kingdom and has left it in a ruined state. We'll have to get all our resources gathered together and begin fixing what has been damaged immediately." the Magister murmured.

"But what about the Red Scarves? They got away!" protested Neera, "We need to send somebody after them and get them back!"

"I called the dragon blood and her friends earlier to come and assist us." explained the Magister, "They can be the ones to track down Natalya and her disciples. My people come first so all resources will be assigned to repairing my kingdom…before any lives are lost." he mused, his voice heavy and serious.

The two pandas nodded understandably. Though Neera began having suspicions of her own about the whole affair.

"Something doesn't smell right around here…" she murmured.

"It's not me is it?" asked Gong curiously.

"For once, no it isn't." sniffed Neera, "I'm referring to what's happened. Natalya and her comrade Spade blow a hole in the floor of our dungeon…and then this disaster happens to the rest of the kingdom. Do you…think she was responsible for that too?"

"It's possible…" mused the Magister, "She must have been packing a lot of explosive devices if this has happened. She's more dangerous than we could possibly have calculated…"

He was then cut-off by a rather surprising arrival. Lilac and her friends suddenly burst into the room, looking very flustered, and they charged towards the Royal Magister as if their lives depended on his survival in some way. The firm but fair kingdom ruler read their expressions and immediately concluded that they had more bad news to deliver to him. And just when he thought the news he'd already received was bad enough.

"Lilac. I trust you and your friends grace your presences with news of some kind?" the Magister mused curiously.

"We do, though it's nothing pleasant I'm sorry to say." said Lilac as she caught her breath again, "Natalya's long gone your honour. She got away, she and the Red Scarves. We tried to stop her but she slowed us down with some well-set traps. She even blew up the drainage tunnels and we nearly got killed in the resulting cave-in. Natalya played us all for saps Magister, every one of us. She'd clearly set-up the tunnels to blow long before she even got here to break the Scarves out. It was clear she planned to break out the Scarves and then blow up the tunnels to cause damage to your kingdom from underneath your feet."

"It's quite the escape plan if I ever saw it." murmured Carol, "We're total sorry that we failed to stop her your Royal Facelessness."

"Please don't be mad at us!" whimpered Milla.

The Magister had taken in Lilac's cryptic testimony and had realized that Neera's theory on Natalya being responsible for the disaster outside was correct. He had to admit, the dragon truly had outsmarted them all. Never could anybody have prepared for a turnout like this. And Natalya had used that to her advantage…used it hard no less. He closed his eyes and sighed heavily.

"It's just as I feared…I feared that Natalya would strike back at me and my kingdom at some point…and my fears have come true." he said solemnly, "I do not blame you five at all for what has happened. You said it yourself, Natalya played us all for fools, you five as well as all of us."

"I know…and it makes me sick to think that she's getting away with murder, not literally but you get my point." Lilac grumbled, "But your majesty, we have an idea on what her next plan is."

"Does it involve us some more?" asked Gong worriedly.

"No, it's another treasure hunt." The teen-dragon explained, "I found this scroll in her lair, before it tried to flatten us, and it seems to be about a treasure of some kind."

She held up the scroll and then unrolled it so she could show the Magister what it was about.

"We're wondering if you know what this is at all." she added, showing the unrolled scroll to the robed ruler.

The Magister took one look at the scroll and upon seeing the purple gem pictured on it, his eyes widened in horror. He leaped back as if the scroll had somehow managed to sting him and he put a hand over his chest as if worried his heart would leap out of it and skip across the room. His response was a single gasp of terror. Gong and Neera were alert and instantly concerned for their leader. Lilac recoiled. She'd never seen the stone-faced magister so scared before in her life. She had even doubted if he could even be scared or feel anything resembling fear. And yet something about the scroll seemed to terrify him. The Magister regained his composure and he spoke, his hands behind his back and his eyes cold and serious.

"That, Lilac, is the Day of Reckoning incarnate." he said grimly, "That…is the Dark Stone."

"Dark Stone?" asked Lilac.

"Let me guess, it's a stone and it's got evil powers just like how the Kingdom Stone is a stone with good powers." sighed Carol, "Sounds like some bad movie I watched last month…"

"You are correct young feline." murmured the Magister, "The Dark Stone is the anti-equivalent of our very own Kingdom Stone. It does not power our world with energy. It is a dark, evil relic that feeds off of negative emotions and corrupts innocent minds. Anybody in contact with the stone is in danger of being corrupted and those with a dark heart are corrupted almost immediately by the stone's nefarious power. Eons ago, it was created by dragons that did not like what was representing and honouring their kind so they created the Dark Stone to try and curse the kingdoms and combat the power of the Kingdom Stone. Thankfully, the dragon who had inspire our kingdoms put a stop to their evil and the Dark Stone was sealed away forever. That scroll you have must have been written to warn us of the stone's evil power. But Natalya must be intending to track it down and use it for her own evil schemes."

The dragon girl could only gasp in horror at what she had been told. The wildcat and hounds just behind her exchanged nervous glances. Even Neera and Gong seemed worried about what they had just heard. An evil equivalent of the Kingdom Stone? How could this be? Lilac swallowed nervously and closed up the scroll.

"So…what does the Dark Stone do?" she asked, "You said it's the Day of Reckoning incarnate…"

"Indeed. And that's what it is." the Magister mused gravely, "Anybody corrupted by the stone's power becomes a huge, dark dragon of destruction. It only seeks to destroy everything in sight. The Dark Stone's creators had been hoping to cleanse the world of Avalice and remake it in an image more befitting them."

"But why would Natalya be interested in this thing?!" shrieked Lilac, "There are lines even SHE won't cross and genocide is one of them! She wants to rule the world, not destroy it!"

"You forget Little Miss Heropants, this is Natalya we're talking about. Nothing's too evil for her." muttered Carol angrily, "I bet she's so mad at losing to you Lilac that she wants to destroy the world, and maybe you as well. It'll be just like her!" she growled.

"But…but it doesn't make any sense!" protested Lilac, "Why would Natalya rescue the Red Scarves if she's gonna destroy the world? Surely she'd just go looking for the stone herself and use it already!"

"It is hard to tell what that vile woman's motivation is at this point. But for now, you five have a new task." the Magister announced, "You MUST keep the Dark Stone out of her hands at all costs. You're the only ones we can spare at the moment to take the task so please, protect the Dark Stone from Natalya. Don't let her destroy our world."

"You didn't need to ask." said Lilac grimly, "We accept! Right guys?"

"You bet! No way is that crazy woman destroying Avalice!" declared Carol.

"We saved the world from Lord Brevon so let's save it from Natalya!" piped Milla.

"And just when I thought we couldn't get anymore adventurous…" sighed Lela, "We're in too."

"We'll protect that stone at any cost." said Miguel bravely.

"Good. One compulsory order you must follow though…" said the Magister firmly, "Do NOT touch the Dark Stone. Not even so much as a finger. You must not be in contact with the stone at all times. Even the slightest touch can affect you in unpredictable ways. You may look, but never touch the Dark Stone."

"Got it. We give our words not to touch it." promised Lilac, "So where can we find it?"

"It is in a cave that does not belong to any of our kingdoms." the opulent Avalician explained, "There is a map that'll take you to the caves in my study. I shall fetch it for you immediately."

"Thank you. One more thing though." the dragon girl cut in, "How do you know about the Dark Stone?"

"Every leader of Shang Tu, Shang Mu or Shuigang is told the tale of the Dark Stone by their predecessors." explained the Magister, "It's a story passed down from generation to generation so that we can hopefully keep the Dark Stone from ever seeing the light of day again."

"I see." said Lilac, "Well, you go get that map for us and we'll be off. We won't fail you Magister."

She and her friends proceeded to bow to the Magister graciously. Pleased with their manners, the Magister bowed back and then left to get them the map to the Dark Stone. As he left, Lilac's face fell even more than it had done before. Just her rotten luck to find out about an Artefact of Doom and even more rotten luck for Natalya to be interested in it! But why would a world conqueror like Natalya be interested in a doomsday gem? Was she intending to destroy the world? Lilac shuddered. All she knew was that today…had just become a nightmare beyond her control…

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, a ship began to descend from miles up above and plough down through the planet's atmosphere. A red tinge lit up the ship as it entered the fiery hot field that separated the world down below from the void of space up above. The ship ploughed straight through, not slowing down for even a minute as it began to head towards the wide stretching land miles below. Had anybody been around to see it, they would notice that the ship was silver in colour, armed to the teeth with gun turrets, designed with powerful engines that could give the ship hyper speed if it needed it and that it had a long shape and intimidating appearance. Nobody could see the descending ship approaching. The thick white clouds shrouded it from the naked eye down below, rendering it invisible for the time being.<p>

Down on the ground, Natalya and the Red Scarves were almost at Shang Mu. They had been crossing fields upon fields of grass after finally leaving Shang Tu behind and the trench-coated dragon had a feeling that Shang Mu wasn't far now. Spade and the Red Scarves were all carrying the treasures they had taken out of their former lair in heavy sacks over their shoulders. Natalya wasn't carrying anything as if to assert authority over her disciples. She had fond memories of the red coloured city. Memories that involved beating the tar out of Lilac, Carol and Milla with ease last December and also knocking them out and kidnapping them. How fitting that the kingdom that had been first on her target list in her infamous Christmas Raid was now going to be her new hiding place. Mayor Zao would be furious if he knew the woman that had wanted him dead was hiding under his nose! She even thought about killing Mayor Zao in his sleep one night so that the possibility of having a Red Scarf rule Shang Mu could still happen.

But then something stopped her dead in her tracks. She held up a hand that told the Red Scarves "Wait" so they all stopped behind her and wondered what their leader was curious about. Natalya, who being a dragon had greater senses than most Avalicians, could faintly hear something. It sounded like a rumble. But it was coming from up above. Some kind of ship perhaps? The Mayor boasted a big fleet of airships in Shang Mu. But it couldn't be one of them. The mauve-skinned reptile received her answer for as the clouds parted, a huge silver shape become visible to them. It was a ship, but this one was much more futuristic and hi-tech in design. It had to be alien. Natalya watched as it began to descend, heading down towards the nearby mountains that overlooked Shang Mu. The ship climbed down, down, down until eventually, it disappeared behind the mountains. The pilots clearly did not want to be seen. But they had been seen and Natalya's curiosity was piqued more than ever. What was what ship and where had it come from? What was it doing here? Could it be…?

"What was that?" asked Spade quizzically.

"I think we're dealing with extra-terrestrial affairs…" the crime boss murmured, "You take the others to our new lair Spade. I will investigate that ship."

"You sure?" asked Spade, pretending to be worried for Natalya.

"Don't question my orders, just do as you're told!" snapped Natalya, "I'll be back soon."

"Don't be too long…" Spade muttered through gritted teeth.

With any luck, his idiot boss would get herself by whoever it was piloting that strange ship. He shrugged his shoulders as he carried on walking towards Shang Mu. Natalya was just making it easier for him to take over her position with her foolishness. As the Red Scarves continued walking on, Natalya sprinted off quickly towards the mountains. She had a big idea on who was in that ship but she daren't get too hopeful. She could well be wrong.

_Who's in that ship? Who's invading Avalice? And what are they here for…? _the curious dragon pondered in her thoughts…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Oh...crap...this cannot go well...<strong>_

_**Lilac and friends, guarding the Dark Stone! Lord Brevon, sneaking past Torque's fleet undetected! Natalya, interested in an alien ship! What's this all building up to?! I dread to think what it could be...**_


	6. Chapter 5: Nefarious Alliance

_Chapter 5: Nefarious Alliance_

Torque finally touched down upon the floor of his flagship, now back within the safety of his own vessel with space safely outside once again.

He had flown for a few minutes before reaching his fleet and the flagship had been quick to let him in. Now inside, Torque lowered the still achy Terra on the floor, being careful not to hurt her even more, and he disembarked from the mech-suit. As cool as it had been to pilot, he was rather happy to be out of it at last. It was quite cramped in the cockpit and Torque always did prefer feeling less enclosed if he could help it. He was quick to check on his lieutenant as soon as he left the mech. Terra placed her hands on the air helmet around her head and took it off so she could breathe better. She looked OK with no visible injuries but she still seemed to be aching in her body from Serpentine's earlier hit. She forced herself onto her feet, straining heavily with effort as she did so.

"Can you walk?" asked Torque worriedly.

"You might need to help me a little." sighed Terra, "I ache like mad! I'm due for a good rest in my cabin after that workout!"

"I'm just glad Serpentine didn't break any bones." murmured Torque, "Though in space, I suppose it'd be harder to do that. Anyway, we'll get you up to the bridge so we can congratulate you on your services to the Coalition of Planets and then you can get some rest."

"Thanks Torque-y." said Terra appreciatively, putting her arm around her friend's shoulder so she could stand better, "It's been an absolute pleasure to spy on that creepy-ass monster and ruin his beautiful plan for you and the whole Chaser fleet. I'd happily do it again if you let me commander."

"Not a good idea. Brevon might expect another spy after what happened and chances are, you won't survive the next time." the male Chaser replied, walking steadily with Terra holding on to him, "Your reputation precedes you yes but there could be a chance that Brevon will catch you if you spy on him again. I can't let that happen to you or anybody else in my crew."

"But sir, how can we catch Brevon for good if we don't know what he's doing next?" the female Chaser protested, "Please, let me spy on him again, he won't expect me to do it again!"

"No Terra!" Torque snapped, a little too loudly for his liking, "I'm sorry but your safety comes first, as does all of my crew! It was risky even sending you to spy on Brevon in the first place, I can't take a risk like that again! Please…please try to understand." he added, his face solemn and maybe even a little pained.

"I do commander." said Terra softly, "But you need to learn that you can't let your previous losses constantly drag you down. You lost your crew, I sympathize with that. My big brother Phoenix was in that crew remember? Not a day passes where I don't miss him." she murmured, her face falling with despair.

"Oh yes…I remember Phoenix." the commander sighed, "He was a brave, brave man. It broke my heart when I broke the news to you that he died."

"I was so crushed that I thought I was gonna drop dead myself." the lieutenant said grimly, "But do you know why I joined your new crew? Because I wanted to avenge those we lost. I want to honour the sacrifices our friends made for us, especially my brother. He wouldn't want me to keep missing him and keep being paranoid about losing others. He'd want me to fight in his honour and fight alongside those who wish to keep the galaxy safe from freaks like Brevon. Come on commander, please stop letting the loss of your previous crew drag you down. Paranoia is a monster that'll tear you apart inside out. You must let your crew have the freedom it needs to defeat those who threaten the peace."

"It's easier said than done Terra…" Torque sighed heavily, "And I can't promise I'll ease up. It's gonna be hard, but I'll try to simmer down. For now, just respect my wishes and keep safe OK?"

"Promise." Terra replied, "I'll try as hard as possible to make sure I don't get in danger like this again. I hate the thought of causing you a lot of anxiety. I want to prove to you that you don't have to worry about me so much."

"That's nice of you." the commander said softly, "Let's forget about our conversation and focus on our victory over Brevon. Say…" he said suddenly, "Would you like to visit Avalice Terra?"

"Would I? WOULD I?! Is that a trick question?" sneered Terra, "I'd love to visit Avalice! You told me some amazing stories about that planet and how that's the world that's ruined Brevon's reputation! I'd especially love to meet this "Lilac" girl you've told me about too! She's the girl who stomped on Brevon and made him a laughing stock! Ohmigosh, it'd be so awesome to meet her and her friends! EEEEEEE!"

"I'm glad you like that idea." Torque chuckled, "I'll debrief the fleet first and then me and you can take a starship down to the planet. We'll leave the fleet on standby. Brevon MIGHT try and invade Avalice again. We can't leave anything to chance."

"Good idea sir." the turquoise woman agreed, "The fleet can just shoot Brevon to bits if he comes near Avalice again. I doubt he has much of a fleet left."

"And I bet his army's much smaller now." the green Chaser said with a confident smile, "Soon Brevon will be a thing of the past. He may as well give up now before he ends up dead. I kinda wish he'd see things our way instead of being so obsessed with conquest."

"Huh, that'll be the day." muttered Terra, "Ah well, I doubt he'll come near Avalice again anytime soon so me and you will have a peaceful visit."

Torque nodded agreeably. He could hardly wait to leave his flagship and touch down on Avalice once again. This would be his third visit to the planet itself. He'd been there once tracking down Lord Brevon and trying to keep the Kingdom Stone out of his reach last year and then three months ago, he'd visited again while Avalice was having a very Merry Christmas. He had enjoyed his last visit greatly and had been saddened he had to leave a couple of days after Christmas had ended. Over the past three months, he'd found himself missing Avalice, but most of all…he missed Lilac. There was something about her that infatuated him. Was it her spirit and courage? Her grace and beauty perhaps? Or was it because she had been such a good friend to him when he first landed on Avalice that made him like her so much? He even wondered if it was more than that when he was in Lilac's presence. What Torque knew for definite was that there was something about Lilac that he liked and he always missed her when he left Avalice. Maybe he could leave the Chasers and become a member of Avalice permanently? He didn't know what would be the best option. But he knew that he would give Terra a lovely tour of the planet and that he would make the most of his time on Avalice once again. He and Terra continued heading towards the bridge, already thinking on what they were going to do down on Avalice…

* * *

><p>Down on the planet itself, Natalya had reached the landing sight of the strange vessel that had landed down behind the mountains near Shang Mu. She allowed herself to slide down a rocky slope for a few metres and then she dived behind a nearby rock to keep out of sight. She held her breath, waiting to see if anybody was going to come out of the ship yet. Two minutes passed and nothing happened. Relieved, Natalya poked her head around from the side of the rock and took a good look at the ship. Now down on the ground, it was much easier to see. Natalya admired the sleek design and the armoured fuselage of the ship. She knew for definite that Avalice was being invaded by aliens, just like last year. This was not a ship of Avalician build. But who owned it? And how many aliens were in that ship?<p>

_If I could just get a closer look…_Natalya thought to herself.

She knew it was risky trying to get even closer to an alien vessel but as far as she was concerned, it didn't matter. She'd easily evade any attack thrown at her, no silly alien would take her down. Then again, she was used to fighting Avalicians. What if the aliens were stronger than an Avalician? It was very possible that Natalya was out of her depth but if worst came to worst, then the dragon would just run for her life. Natalya was about to come out from behind the rock until suddenly, the ship's docking ramp lowered down to the ground with a loud hiss and a slight clang. Natalya stared as the ship's occupants began to descend down the ramp and out into the bright sunlight outside. She could hear loud, metallic stomping that spelt death to anybody who heard the footsteps. A robot perhaps? But then the thing revealed itself to be an armoured creature and not a robot. Natalya's jaw dropped at the sight of the alien. It was like nothing she'd ever seen before. He looked totally serious and very powerful, despite the rather ridiculous looking unibrow perched between his eyes. His bulky body said two things about him: power and strength. Natalya knew that if she got on the wrong side of this monster, chances were she would end up pushing up the daisies. Who was that creature? Natalya briefly thought back to last year's legendary events. Was it the Kingdom Stone thief himself? The one who had stolen the valuable relic and tried to leave with it? The dragon continued watching as the alien folded its arms and glared at the surrounding terrain. It was as if the very scene before him greatly offended him. Natalya took that in. This alien didn't like Avalice it seemed. Was he here to destroy it? Possibly. And there was something familiar about this alien. But what was it? She continued watching as the alien was then accompanied by a snake with robotic arms attached to a chest plate around its upper body and a floating green robot with blade-tipped metal tentacles. The alien had some strange company that was for sure. The robot floated in front of the alien and spoke in a feminine voice.

"The coast is clear. We are safe for the time being." Syntax reported, "Though Lord Brevon, I do not see the logic in coming to destroy Avalice with just one ship. Wasn't your fleet formulated for precisely that reason?"

Natalya's heart missed a beat. Lord Brevon! She was looking at Lord Brevon himself! She had been investigating the crash site of his ship with Miguel and Lela at the time and had only very briefly seen him. She had seen his ship self-destruct too, presumably Lilac, Carol and Milla's work. And yet Brevon was here, very much alive! She had to be dreaming, this couldn't be real. Natalya pinched herself sharply, hoping to wake herself up. Nothing changed. She wasn't dreaming at all. Lord Brevon himself was here, on Avalice, with motivations of death in mind. He had clearly survived the explosion of his ship last year. The mauve skinned dragon then suddenly had a wicked thought. Perhaps Brevon could be useful in her plans to get rid of Lilac and conquer Avalice. She had to meet him and see if he would be willing to help her. Brevon was currently looking at Syntax, his attention very much away from anything else so Natalya had the perfect opportunity to sneak up on the evil alien. She crept slowly out of her hiding place as the red-eyed monster spoke to his robotic servant.

**"I have come too far to simply crawl back to my home world Syntax." **he growled in quite possibly, the most demonic voice Natalya had ever heard in her life, **"Fleet or no fleet, this planet is being reduced to cinders! I refuse to let myself be pushed back by those self-righteous warriors who have a disgustingly sweet affection for this pathetic world. I'll destroy this planet even if I have to use ONE ship to do it!"**

"And this ship will dish out a LOT of damage master!" cried Serpentine excitedly, "We haven't lost yet! Those Chasers have only delayed the inevitable!"

**"Quite right general. And let us remember that very important, powerful relic that this world values so greatly." **Brevon noted, **"That…Kingdom Stone as they called it. If we can find it and steal it again, it'll give me the power I need to reduce this world into a wasteland of a planet! Those Chasers thought they defeated me? They couldn't be further from the truth."**

He then proceeded to cackle delightedly with such a thought implanted in his evil, twisted mind. What he wouldn't give to see Torque's face when he realized that he'd sneaked past his fleet in an invisible ship and had got down to Avalice! It would serve him right for being so cocky and believing himself so strong and intelligent enough to actually beat him. Then suddenly, Syntax seemed to be watching something. Brevon noticed his mechanical companion twitching a little from side to side as if following the movements of something nearby.

**"What is it?!" **snarled Brevon.

"Sir, it appears we are not alone." droned Syntax, "We appear to have…company."

**"Where?!"**

"Over there sir."

Syntax pointed with one of her tentacles. Brevon and Serpentine both cast their eyes over to a pile of rocks standing forlornly at the bottom of a deep, rocky slope that led up to the mountains ahead. The A.I. servant had spotted Natalya emerging from her hiding place and had watched her creep closer to the trio, moving very slowly as she did so. Cursing herself for getting caught, Natalya stood up straight and held up her hands. Brevon understood the gesture: "At ease, I mean no harm". Hopefully, the gesture wasn't masking the stranger's true intentions. Brevon observed Natalya with hateful eyes. She was clearly Avalician and she looked a little similar to Lilac. Maybe she was related to her in some way? Brevon had to admit that he was rather intrigued at the sight of the woman.

**"Who are you?" **he demanded, **"And how have you managed to have the misfortune of coming across me?"**

"My name is Natalya and I come in peace…Lord Brevon is it?" she asked innocently, "I saw your ship landing and I simply let my curiosity guide me to you. Please though, don't be offended by my presence. I have no intentions involving harm of any kind."

"She's lying! Let's kill her and get on with our plans!" barked Serpentine.

**"No general." **Brevon growled dismissively, **"So…Natalya. I take it you've heard of me before given my atrocities committed against your world a year ago?"**

"There isn't an Avalician who hasn't heard of your terrifying name your honour." said Natalya, bowing politely to the caped lord before her, "I even observed your ship taking off and watched it explode."

**"And I suppose you thought I was dead?" **

"Definitely. I'm thrilled to see that you're alive though."

Brevon felt as if he had been slapped in the face for a minute. This Avalician woman, standing before him all polite and pleasant, was THRILLED that he, the one who had tried to make off with her planet's Kingdom Stone, was alive?! Brevon put a finger to his lips in thought. This was definitely getting interesting. He decided to see where this conversation was going to go.

**"You're…thrilled that I survived?" **he asked.

"What's your game Natalya?" Serpentine growled suspiciously.

"It is no game at all." the dragon replied smoothly, "I mean it. I'm glad that your master's alive my reptilian friend. You see…I was hoping that a man of your talents could help me with something." she looked over at Brevon.

The alien warlord raised a brow in interest. Natalya wanted his help? Maybe things were looking up for him. He could potentially manipulate the foolish dragon into helping him destroy Avalice.

**"Go on…" **he purred eagerly.

Natalya grinned with approval. She had no idea that this alien clot was so easy to fool. Maybe Brevon wasn't quite the invincible tyrant he was made out to be. How he had managed to manipulate the kingdoms into raging war on each other was beyond her.

"I have no love for my world anymore." the dragon began, "You see, I'm a would-be world conqueror just like you are. Maybe you're more successful, I dunno. The fact is, I orchestrated a plan to take over Avalice and rule its three kingdoms with an iron fist."

**"Interesting." **the warlord mused delightedly. He liked to hear about other beings and their desires to conquer worlds, be it their own or another planet.

"Thank you. Anyway, my plan was quite brilliant." Natalya boasted, utterly shameless as she bragged, "I was going to kill the kingdom's leaders and then replace them with myself and two members of my army. Oh yes, it was quite a brilliant plan. But then that impudent brat Lilac ruined everything. She got my gang arrested and she pounded me into submission! She's ruined my reputation and made me a laughing stock! And that's where me and you have something in common my extra-terrestrial friend. Lilac is the one who destroyed your ship and stopped you getting away with the Kingdom Stone."

Brevon's fists tightened. The mere mention of Lilac's name was enough to generate rage within him. He was pleased to hear that this Avalician villainess had been ruined by the same girl he had come to kill. It gave him more reason to manipulate the woman into working for him.

**"So despite being very different species, we both have a common enemy." **Brevon purred, **"That purple-skinned cretin that dared to make a mockery out of my name as she has done to you! I cannot tell you how I've desired to kill that insolent girl for daring to interfere with my mission and ruin everything for me! Thanks to her, my name is a joke! Nobody fears me anymore and I have MORE people standing up against me and daring to take a shot at me!"**

"That's too bad…" said Natalya, pretending to feel sorry for the alien, "So we have every reason to want to destroy this world my friend. Our reputations have been ruined by Lilac and now we must stand together and make the world pay for daring to say no to us. So I propose…an alliance between us." she said smoothly, "We could team up against Lilac and kill her! Then we can destroy this forlorn planet and make ourselves feared once again! Why, I could even join your army my lord. Trust me, you will benefit GREATLY from this alliance. I'm Avalice's most powerful fighter and I'll dispatch of your enemies easily! I get glory I deserve, you get a powerful ally. That way, we both win."

"I think the lady has some profound points master!" cried Serpentine, "What do you say? Shall we make this alliance?"

Lord Brevon thought for a moment. It was impossible to tell what was going on inside the alien's head. Brevon was a man who made decisions and choices very quickly, and they were often unpleasant. It didn't take him long to decide on what to do about the woman's proposal. He could see the benefits of having Natalya on his side. She'd help him greatly in destroying Avalice and she knew Lilac. She could help him get to her too. Grinning, Brevon chuckled and then held out a hand.

**"Consider our alliance…accepted." **he said, **"We will be united together in our cause to make that lilac person pay for her atrocities committed against us. There is ONE condition though…I must be the one to finish her off."**

"Suit yourself. But I demand to get a shot at her before you kill her." purred Natalya, shaking the alien's rather large hand gleefully.

**"Perhaps you can break a few bones of hers before I scrape her flesh away from them." **Brevon suggested, **"Her death will be most satisfying if her two worst enemies are the ones to bring her to her grave."**

"You speak words of truth my lord." the dragon crooned, "Now then, I heard you're plotting to get the Kingdom Stone, am I right?"

Brevon nodded.

"I'm sorry to say that you won't find it anywhere." Natalya sighed, "It's no longer a stone, it's a swirling mass of stars that appears occasionally in the sky, filling our kingdoms with energy as it pleases. Pinpointing its location is impossible as it's always moving. BUT…there is an alternative."

**"Explain." **Brevon demanded.

"There is another gem of great power on this world…it is called the Dark Stone and it is a stone that'll make you invincible." explained Natalya, "The stone has the ability to turn you into a dragon of destruction. You will be invincible and you will get what you want…a ravaged Avalice and your reputation restored. I've been planning to find the Dark Stone and use it for myself but…I suppose we can share it. I promise you, that stone will be a worthy find, make no mistake on that."

**"So this world has a relic that grants the user destructive powers that'll see this world in ruination?" **Brevon mused delightedly, **"Sounds more interesting than that Kingdom Stone this planet values so much. Instead of the Kingdom Stone, we will track that down and use it to destroy this planet." **

"A wise choice indeed my lord. And how about this? I've got a very good idea on what we could use the stone for." Natalya added excitedly, "You see, the stone plays on negative emotions and corrupts minds. Well I've thought about this: how about we use the stone on Lilac herself? I know you want her dead but hear me out. Just to spite the little brat, we could turn Lilac evil with the stone and have her destroy some of Avalice for us! And just before she gets too carried away, that metal…thing of yours can take the stone back." she motioned to Syntax, "With the Dark Stone gone, Lilac will turn back to normal. When everybody sees that she's the dragon attacking them, they'll accuse her of treason and have her arrested! That way, she can't get in our way when we destroy Avalice! She won't be able to interfere with us and ruin anything! And who knows, maybe the experience will traumatize her so much that she'll not offer any resistance or straight up kill herself out of shame. And with Lilac out of the way, we can use the stone to destroy Avalice without any problems at all! And when you find the cell Lilac's locked up in, you can kill her anyway you like! Do you like the sound of that Brevon?"

The alien's response was a cackle that chilled the blood.

**"Utterly magnificent! That sounds like my kind of plan!" **he cackled, his laughter an ominous booming cackle of sadistic joy, **"I've always enjoyed the idea of corrupting individuals and breaking their spirits. I've corrupted as many heroes as I've killed in my time. Breaking the spirit of that interfering animal will be most satisfying for me. Your plan meets my approval Natalya."**

"And mine too!" cried Serpentine happily, "This is definitely an alliance we won't regret forging!"

"I'm happy to hear that." beamed Natalya, "So, how to break the girl so much that the Dark Stone will affect her? She'll be too spirited for it to work on her fully. We have to make her angry, sad or both and then put the stone on her. With her negative emotions prominent, the stone will play on them and multiply the negativity tenfold…"

**"I remember she hung about with two disgusting individuals, one of whom I turned into a monster and forced her to fight." **explained Brevon, **"Maybe we could kill them and make her so full of grief that the Dark Stone will affect her. Either killing or torturing them will make her crack."**

"Ah yes! Carol and Milla! Lilac loves those two brats very much! We could capture one of them and have her brutally tortured just to make Lilac cry!" the crime boss exclaimed, "And maybe we could find out where she lives and destroy her home! And maybe kill her other friends to add salt onto the wound! With everything lost and one of her friends in agony and also the fact that we, her worst enemies are responsible, she'll be full of grief, rage and hatred! And then, we could then threaten death on the kidnapped Avalician! That'll DEFINITELY make her crack!"

"And then the Dark Stone will turn her into a monster that'll destroy the world she swore to protect!" screeched Serpentine, "We'll ruin her reputation, like he's ruined ours! Tchyahahahahahahahahaha!"

**"Indeed general." **Brevon mused sinisterly, **"The plan is brilliant my comrade. It's bound to work. So go and fetch this stone for me. I'll wait for you to return."**

"You don't want to come?" asked Natalya curiously.

**"I think I might horrify the creature more if she has no idea that I'm involved in this affair." **Brevon noted, **"Horror is a negative emotion that'll feed the Dark Stone and make her vulnerable. The shock of seeing me will make everything worse for her, and it'll be a more paralyzing effect if she comes to save her kidnapped comrade and finds me here as well."**

"Very logical." the dragon purred, "Well, I'll just go and get the Dark Stone for you. I recommend sending your robot friend to accompany me. After I get the Dark Stone and kidnap one of her friends, that thing could maybe follow Lilac home and find out where it is so we can destroy it."

**"Very well, Syntax will accompany you." **Brevon said casually, **"Keep out of sight though, don't give my presence away." **he added, glaring at Syntax.

"I will keep far out of sight, even when following the dragon to her home." Syntax promised.

**"In that case, you may go and fetch the Dark Stone." **Brevon added, glancing at Natalya.

"I'll be right back." Natalya promised, "I'll fetch my gang first and then we'll get the stone. And our conquest can begin…"

With nothing more to add, Natalya turned on her heels and sprinted off with Syntax following her. Brevon watched as the trench-coated dragon and his robotical accomplice ran off up the slope and over the mountains. The warlord smiled to himself wickedly. Serpentine looked over at Brevon, curious on what the evil world conqueror was thinking.

"You're planning to betray her, aren't you?"

**"Alliances are only meant to be forged when they benefit my plans." **Brevon explained, **"Once my hated nemesis is locked up for treason she committed under our volition, I will see how quickly I can cast her aside. I have no need for a fool like her…"**

His sentence concluded with another malevolent cackle…

* * *

><p>"OK if this map is to be believed…" Lilac mused as she glanced down at the map in her hands for the hundredth time, "The Dark Stone should be…in that cave there."<p>

She swept a hand over the landscape and pointed at a rather eerie looking cave entrance ahead of her. Upon obtaining the map to the Dark Stone's location from The Magister, Lilac and friends had immediately set off into the world in order to find the cave that housed the deadly artefact and keep it safe from Natalya. They had been travelling for an hour before finally finding where they had to be. They had left Shang Tu and walked several miles into the east, finding themselves in a large stretch of land that was known as the "Unowned Lands". Any land that didn't belong to Shang Tu, Shang Mu, Shuigang or any place outside of those kingdoms were branded with that name to let anybody know that the lands weren't owned. Anybody who wanted to put the lands to good use would know straight away that the Unowned Lands were occupation free. About 30% of Avalice was "Unowned Land", leaving the rest of the planet occupied with the eponymous three kingdoms and any cities, towns or villages outside of the kingdoms.

The cave housing the Dark Stone was appropriately named the "Cave of Malevolence". It was so called because the cave itself had a rather unsettling appearance to it. The mouth of the have had stalagmites and stalactites protruding from the top and bottom, making it look like a huge, toothy mouth waiting to close down and swallow up anybody who walked inside. There were even peculiar looking slits above the mouth that must have been carved at some point. They looked like evil eyes, giving the cave the appearance of having a monstrous face. Lilac shivered at the sight of it. Trust the legendary dragons to hide the Dark Stone in a place like that! Milla seemed even more frightened of the cave's rather malevolent appearance. She clutched her mother and buried her face into her side.

"Mommy, I don't want to go in there!" she whimpered, "It looks too scary!"

"There, there dear, you don't have to go in if you don't want to." said Lela gently, "Sorry Lilac, me and Milla will have to stay out here while you go in."

"It's OK Mrs. Basset." said Lilac kindly, "You coming Miguel or would you rather keep your family company?"

"I think I'd rather stay out here too." said Miguel, going back over to his wife and child, "I don't like caves much myself. They fill me with dread when I go in."

"Suit yourself." said Lilac casually, "Come on Carol, let's go in and see the doomsday gem for ourselves."

"Remember. No touchie." said Carol firmly, "Don't want you going "Crazy Dragon of Destruction" on us."

"You too." sneered Lilac.

The dragon girl folded up the map and stuffed it into her belt. She then grabbed a torch and switched it on. She had decided to take one since it was likely they would need to go in the cave and the light would make it easier to see inside of it. A beam of light leapt out of the torch and illuminated the darkness. Carol thought for a moment that she saw something run away as if afraid of the light and needing the darkness for comfort. She shook it off and followed her best friend into the cave. Lilac and Carol watched their steps as they stepped over the stalagmites in the entrance and descended cautiously down into the cave. They almost felt as if they were food for a huge, rocky monster and it was swallowing them up. The good thing was this monster had no organs so they hardly had to worry about ending up inside a huge stomach. Lilac shivered.

"Brrr…it suddenly gets colder when you leave the light." she muttered.

"That's because caves don't get sunlight Lilac." said Carol matter-of-factly, "It'll always be cold in here no matter what season it is."

"Not even a hot summer's day would warm this place up." the dragon sighed.

She ignored the bitter cold as she continued walking forwards. The cave ceilings were low but still a decent height up and there were puddles in places on the floor. Carol leapt in alarm as a cold drop of water splashed onto her head. That one drop had been utterly freezing. The wildcat shook it off and kept her beady eyes fixed on Lilac. Being a cat, she could see well in the dark though she'd rather Lilac not turn the torch off for she wasn't sure if she'd see well in total darkness, even with night vision. The dragon swept the torch over the tunnels. All she could see was rock, bumpy floors and water. How water got into this cave, she would never know. The only sounds she could hear were her own footsteps mixed with Carol's. Did anything live down here? Lilac hoped it wasn't anything unfriendly.

After walking for a few minutes, the two girls reached their destination. They were in a circular area of the cave that had vicious looking stalactites dangling dangerously from the ceiling above as if ready to chomp down on any foolish person below. Part of the scenery or some kind of trap? Hidden in the shadows were skeletons of past Avalicians who had wandered into the cave, Lilac didn't see them for she was focused on what was ahead of her. In any case, she didn't care what the stalactites were. She wouldn't go too far under them so there was nothing to fear. There was a stone-carved plinth under the stalactites and sitting on the plinth was a large spherical gem that was the exact same size as the famed Kingdom Stone. It was purple in colour and had a slight aurora around it. The gem looked like it could bring death to anybody who used it. Lilac switched off her torch. With the gem's light, they didn't need the torch anymore. Lilac and Carol walked up to it, mesmerized by the ominous, yet beautiful glow of the gem. There was no doubt about it. The gem was the Dark Stone itself.

"Wow…" whispered Carol.

"This is it…the Dark Stone itself." said Lilac quietly, "The doomsday gem incarnate..."

"It's pretty beautiful looking…in a creepy, evil kind of way that is." said Carol softly, "Pretty to look at but deadly to touch I guess. Huh, sounds like some kind of deadly spider…"

"Well that thing's deadlier than any spider." the dragon murmured, "Remember Carol, don't touch it."

"Not touching!" the wildcat snapped, "I'm not even moving towards it! Though I imagine some people must have been REALLY tempted to touch that thing when they saw it. That is, if anybody's ever seen it…"

Lilac was suddenly not listening anymore. There was something strange going on inside her head. She stared at the Dark Stone as if entranced by it and she could hear something even though it wasn't Carol's voice like it should be. She was hearing…whispers. They were right in her ears as if the whispers were really there and not just going on inside her head. The whispers were saying words…dark words. Evil words.

_Embrace your fears Lilac…go on…embrace…_

Lilac began to feel uncomfortable. There they were, her emotions, already out of whack and being played upon by some mysterious force that she couldn't see, smell or fear but most definitely hear. Her heart began to pound and her skin began to crawl. It almost felt like she was losing control of her body. The voices continued whispering in her brain.

_I can feel your fear…you're full of anxiety. You're plagued by nightmares…don't fight them. Embrace them…I can make you feel all better. Just touch me…and your emotions will cease to matter. Go on…touch me…embrace me…_

The dragon girl screwed her face up and gripped her head. She looked as if she was trying to will the voices to stop with her mind. What was going on?! Was it the Dark Stone itself doing this? Was this part of its scary, dark power? The Magister hadn't said anything about it being able to put voices in your head. Lilac began to feel very frightened. Tears poured down her cheeks as the voices continued whispering disturbing words to her. She couldn't hear her own sobbing, only the voices in her head.

_Fear is a force that can kill a man…or woman. You must give into your fears. Fighting them is pointless. Embrace me…I can get rid of your fears. Don't resist…please…I only want to help you…_

**"SHUT UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUP!" **screamed Lilac at the top of her voice.

Carol was so alarmed by the dragon's screaming that she swore she jumped out of her skin for a moment. She turned around and quickly saw that her best friend was in a terrible state. Lilac was sitting on the floor with her back firmly against the wall, her head in her hands as she sobbed uncontrollably into them. Her tears soaked her palms. Mercifully, the voices had stopped and Lilac was relived she could hear herself weeping. Carol ran over to Lilac and knelt down in front of her. Her ears drooped back in dismay.

"Lilac? Lilac! Why are you crying?" asked Carol.

"Please Carol, we've gotta get away from that thing!" wailed Lilac feebly, "It's giving me bad vibes! REALLY bad vibes!"

"What do you mean? What's wrong buddy?" the wildcat asked, putting her hands on her crying friend's arms and lowering her hands away from her eyes.

"I'm hearing voices…they're telling me to touch the stone and embrace my fears!" sobbed Lilac, her tear-soaked eyes staring directly into Carol's "I was scared, I was so scared! It was like…like…like it was baiting me! It was trying to manipulate me! And the worst part is, I can still feel the fear inside me building up! Please Carol, take me out of here! Get me as far away from that thing as possible!"

"Sure thing, no problem." said Carol, helping Lilac onto her feet and taking the torch from her.

She switched it on and quickly began walking away with Lilac walking closely behind her. The dragon didn't even glance over her shoulder as the Dark Stone was left behind to stand on is lonely stone plinth. The wildcat looked over pityingly at her best friend. Poor Lilac. When would she ever be happy again? It broke her heart to see her reptilian friend so anxiety-ridden as of late. She wasn't sure what had happened back there but she had a feeling that the Dark Stone may well have done what it was said to do: play on negative emotions. Lilac was full of them given her worries over her two worst enemies and her long string of nightmares she had been plagued with for many nights. It was amazing to think the Dark Stone could make Lilac a crying mess just by looking at it. She dreaded to think what would have happened if Lilac had touched it. She looked over at her friend, pleased to see she was crying a lot less now. The dragon wiped her eyes dry and got her sniffling under control.

"Feel better?" asked Carol.

"Much better, thanks." said Lilac, a little cheerfully, "So…who knew the Dark Stone could play on negative emotions without me needing to touch it?"

"That's what makes that thing extremely creepy." the feline tomboy said uneasily, "All you did was look at it and you broke down. I wasn't affected oddly enough, though I don't have many negative emotions in me I guess. I wonder if it had a stronger effect on you because you're a dragon."

"Being it was MADE by dragons, it's possible that's the case." the she-dragon mused, "Either way, I'm NOT going near that thing again."

"Good idea bud." said Carol softly, touching her friend's scaly arm tenderly, "Come on, let's get outta here and meet up with the Bassets again."

"Yes, that would be great." said Lilac brightly.

The two girls then proceeded to run through the dark tunnels and back to the cave entrance, putting more and more distance behind the Dark Stone as they ran. Somehow, getting further away from the Dark Stone made Lilac feel safer even though it hadn't even done any harm to her yet. The dragon and cat both exited the eerie cave…and found themselves looking at an extraordinary sight. The Basset family was also looking up at the sky, captivated at what they were looking at. Down from the sky descended a huge rocket with a bronze colour scheme and a somewhat missile-shaped design. From afar, it could easily have been mistaken for a missile. The curious thing about the rocket was that it looked familiar. Lilac stared at it, swearing that she had seen it before. The space-faring craft settled down onto the ground, its roaring engines blowing dust and grit everywhere as it settled down. The terrific noise then ground down into silence and the rocket became still and un-functioning for merely a brief moment. And that was when Lilac noticed why the rocket was familiar. She, Carol and Milla saw that the rocket had a love heart, a paw print and a "Carol Wuz Here" signature scrawled on it. They had put them on that rocket themselves before it had left Avalice to return to the stars. That could only mean one thing…

The doors of the rocket opened and out stepped the familiar face of the very Chaser Commander himself, Torque. He stepped down from his rocket and waved cheerily to his friends.

"Hello there!" he said, "Didn't think you'd see me again did ya?"

"TORQUE!" Lilac squealed excitedly.

Before the Chaser knew what was happening, Lilac whizzed up to him like a speeding bullet and threw herself into him. She embraced him tightly and squeezed him as if he was the miracle man she needed in her life. Torque yelped as he was bear-hugged by his friend. He had no idea Lilac was so fond of him. Did she have feelings for him too?

"Ohmigosh, it's so great to see you!" the dragon shrieked delightedly, "I had no idea you were gonna come to Avalice again!"

"Yeah, I think she missed ya a fair bit." snickered Carol.

"What gave you that idea then?" chuckled Torque, "Say Lilac, is this gonna happen every time I see you again?"

The dragon blushed and let go of the alien Chaser.

"Um, heh, heh, I guess I really do miss ya when you're gone." she said sheepishly, "So, what brings you to our world again?"

"I have a friend who's quite interested in the stories I've been telling my fellow Chasers about this planet and you guys so I thought I'd let her see it for herself." the alien explained.

"Her?" Lilac echoed, sounding a little disappointed.

"Before you get any ideas, no, we're not a couple." said Torque tightly, "We're just friends so PLEASE don't get the wrong idea."

"Who said I was?" snorted Lilac indignantly, hoping that Torque bought her little act, "Let's see this friend of yours then."

"Yeah, I'm quite interested to see what a girl version of you looks like." giggled Carol.

"It's not quite like that but yeah, I get what you mean." said Torque, "Anyway, allow me to introduce my friend and lieutenant…Terra."

Right on cue, Terra emerged from inside the rocket and stepped down the boarding ramp, welcoming the warm sunshine up above. The first thing Lilac noticed about her was that she seemed to be walking rather stiffly as if afraid of hurting herself. Terra had been given a clean bill of health with no broken bones and only a few bruises back on the flagship but she still ached a little so to keep the aching to a minimum, she walked in an almost soldier like manner. Carol and Milla were amazed at the sight of Terra. Miguel and Lela shared their fascination. The female Chaser just smiled at them, hoping she was setting a good first impression.

"Hello there." she said politely, "You must be Lilac, Carol and Milla. Torque tells me a lot about you three. You're the girls who made a monkey out of Lord Brevon he says."

"You bet we are!" boasted Lilac, "The three of us infiltrated his ship and kicked his big, sorry ass for trying to steal out Kingdom Stone!"

"You should've been there! She was like "I'll never forgive you!" and he was like "Hurr, hurr, I'm so evil, I'm gonna kill you!" and then they were like "Pow, whack, smack!" and then Lilac was all "Nobody hurts Milla!" as she pounded him into the dirt!" exclaimed Carol in a rather over-the-top and exaggerated manner.

"Wow, sounds pretty cool!" exclaimed Terra, "No wonder Brevon's so sore about it! Ha, ha, ha!"

"I'm still glad that Lilac beat that guy up. He turned me into a monster! It was horrible and Lilac and Carol had to fight me just to snap me out of it!" said Milla, "I thought I was gonna die…"

"Brevon did WHAT?!" shrieked Lela in horror.

"Milla, you weren't supposed to mention that while your parents are around!" hissed Carol.

"Oops…" mumbled Milla, clasping her hands over her mouth.

Terra had taken in the story and she shook her head pityingly for the young hound.

"You're DEAD lucky you survived that…very few people survive being turned into monsters by Brevon. Thank goodness you survived, Milla." she said gravely, "You really, really were lucky."

"I'll say." agreed Lilac, "Thank goodness indeed…otherwise Miguel and Lela here would never have reunited with her…"

"Please can we change the subject?" asked Miguel tightly, "I think my wife would rather not hear anymore about this."

"Sure, we'll do that." said Terra casually, "So, are you Lilac the Dragon Girl?" she asked, looking over at the long-haired reptile, "I guess it should be obvious given your lilac skin colour."

"Yes, I'm Lilac." the dragon replied, "I'm a good friend of Torque's. It's nice to meet you Terra."

The two girls shook hands briefly before continuing the chat.

"So you're Torque's lieutenant? Is that a big rank in the Chasers?" Lilac asked curiously.

"Yep. I'm second in command." Terra announced proudly, "Torque's in charge of his crew and I'm second only to him. It's quite awesome really though I do worry about Torque sometimes. Sometimes I feel he stresses himself a little…makes me worry on what it would be like if I…took his place y'know?" she finished, her face full of concern.

"I understand that feeling." the dragon murmured, "How long have you been a Chaser?"

"Just over a year." the she-alien responded, "I joined shortly after Torque came back from his Avalice mission. I was inspired by my late brother Phoenix to join the fleet. You see, he was along many of the Chasers who fell to Brevon's might."

"He was part of that crew I lost." added Torque, knowing that Lilac would know what he meant, "Terra was heartbroken when I told her the bad news…" he said solemnly.

"Oh no…that's terrible!" exclaimed Lilac, "Your poor brother…"

"So I guess you joined Torque because you wanted to kick Brevon's ass for murdering your brother?" asked Carol.

"Oh no, revenge solves nothing." Terra muttered, "I joined to avenge those we lost and honour their sacrifices. Every minute of every day that passes, I look to the stars and think that my brother's death wasn't in vain now I've risen in his stead."

"You've risen higher than that." noted Torque, "Your brother wasn't quite second-in-command when he was on my crew. I bet he would he so proud to see you in the position he once wanted."

"Maybe he would." the turquoise alien said happily, "But enough about me. I'm the visitor here, I should be asking YOU guys questions. Like what are you doing in this rather drab looking place? I thought you lived in a treehouse?" she glanced over at Torque who said nothing..

"We do." said Lilac, "But we're here because we're on a mission. An evil dragon named Natalya is looking for a gem called the Dark Stone. We have to make sure she doesn't get it."

"If she does, the end of the world may happen!" piped Milla, "It can turn people into nasty dragons who want to destroy everything!"

The Chasers stared in amazement at the girls.

"The Dark Stone…so it's an evil equivalent to your Kingdom Stone right?" asked Torque.

"Pretty much." said Carol casually, "It's in that cave and we must keep Natalya away from it otherwise we're all dead."

"Hmm, experiences in caves taught me that it's always wise to have people inside and outside the cave to defend any treasures that are housed inside." mused Terra.

"I highly recommend that not all of you stand out here and defend it." said Torque helpfully, "Have somebody guard it from the inside as well. It lowers Natalya's chances of getting it."

"OK then." said Lilac agreeably, "Carol, you go and guard the stone inside the cave. Me and the Bassets will stay out here."

"I'll go in too!" offered Terra eagerly, "I love caves! It's so fun and exciting being in one!"

"I think I'll stay out here too." said Torque, "It's definitely wise to have more people outside than in. Plus my pistols may come in handy."

"Deal." said Carol, "Come on Terra, let's keep that stone safe!"

The wildcat sprinted back inside the cave with Terra eagerly running after her and following her in. The dragon, hounds and commander all stayed put, keeping an eye out for danger. Whatever it took, they would all keep the Dark Stone out of Natalya's hands. Lilac began to feel quite happy. Torque being beside her to help fight against Natalya was greatly comforting to her. It also made her think happily of last year. There they were, Chaser and Dragon, fighting against evil once again. And if they had managed to stop Lord Brevon then Natalya had no chance against them. The Dark Stone would be as good as safe now...

But little did the heroes realize was that Natalya was coming with the Red Scarves and Syntax following closely behind. And once she arrived, things were going to get extremely violent for all of them…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Natalya and Brevon...allies?! But for how long? We shall see...<strong>_

_**Torque and Terra are now part of the mission to keep the Dark Stone safe! But will they be of any help? Will Lilac and friends keep the stone safe? Will Natalya and Brevon's plan be executed perfectly? **_

_**All this and more next time...**_


	7. Chapter 6: Fight for the Stone

_Chapter 6: Fight For The Stone_

Time seemed to be at a standstill. Time often had that effect on those who waited, sitting around staring either ahead, above or below with nothing to do. It was amazing to think just how differently time worked between somebody busying themselves and somebody doing nothing.

To Lilac, time felt as if it was no longer functioning. It seemed to have stopped completely as she sat on a rocky stump at the foot of the Cave of Malevolence. The dragon girl was fixed firmly on her task at hand. With the knowledge that Natalya would likely be coming to this cave to swipe the Dark Stone from its plinth and use it for whatever unspeakable horrors the dragon likely had planned, Lilac was determined not to let her hated nemesis get anywhere near the cave. She had enough nightmares about Natalya as it was, the last thing she could deal with as Natalya unleashing a nightmare upon Avalice. She would guard the Dark Stone with her life if she had to.

There was a downside to guarding something very devotedly and doing nothing but guarding something…it got boring very fast. The lilac-skinned dragon was already finding herself getting bored as she sat on the rock stump and waited for something to happen. She preferred to get straight into the action as opposed to waiting for it to happen. It was more exciting that way. Lilac had no idea how long Natalya was going to take to get to the cave. For all she knew, the dragon villainess was going to wait about a day or two, maybe a week, before deciding to track down the Dark Stone. The waiting for Natalya to come not only bored Lilac, it worried her too. When would she show up? When would she attack? And would she be able to stop her from getting the Dark Stone? With her friends by her side and willing to put their all in, the dragon knew that she didn't need to worry about losing to Natalya. Her former boss wouldn't have much of a chance against her, Carol, Milla, Miguel, Lela, Torque and Terra all at once. She could possibly arrive on the scene with a huge squadron of Red Scarf ninjas but none of them had Lilac concerned at all. The Red Scarves were more a minor annoyance than anything. Spade was the only one other than Natalya to worry about though Lilac had had plenty of practice with him. She wasn't concerned in the slightest about losing a fight with him. That left Natalya as the sole person to worry about and with her and her friends mainly focused on her, she would have a harder time getting past them to the Dark Stone.

As of now though, the boredom seemed to be creeping around like a bad virus. Lilac was already feeling half-asleep from the boredom she was feeling and the Bassets looked as if they were wishing they were somewhere else wanting to do something more exciting. Miguel and Lela were sitting together wondering how long they had been sat waiting and Milla was trying to amuse herself by playing "I Spy". Sadly, her parents didn't seem very enthusiastic about the game so Milla tried to find something else to do. Torque himself even looked a little bored but not as much as the Avalicians. Torque was used to waiting for a long time due to his long experience as captain of a crew in the battlefield. Because of this, waiting seldom bored him. Lilac stared at him, noticing his perfectly controlled composure and grim expression. She could tell that the alien was used to this. How many times had he had to sit and wait for the enemy to leap out and attack? The purple-scaled dragon had a feeling she couldn't possibly know. All she did know was that Torque was preparing himself for the coming battle. Would he fare well against Natalya when she arrived to claim her prize? Hopefully he would. Lilac shifted a little closer to Torque. The silence of doing nothing was getting to her and Lilac just wanted to end it. She cleared her throat uneasily, making Torque jump slightly. It was as if he had been in some kind of trance and the sudden sound of throat clearing had woken him up. Torque looked over at Lilac, finding himself gazing into her beautiful rosey-pink eyes. If there was one thing he could say about Lilac, it was that she had very beautiful eyes, maybe more so than Terra's.

"Oh, um, hey Lilac." he said, trying to keep his composure.

"Hey, um, I just thought I'd stir up a conversation." said Lilac, "I mean it's pretty boring just sitting here right now so we may as well do something to pass the time."

"OK but make sure you keep vigilant." the Chaser insisted, "We don't want this Natalya person to catch us off-guard."

"I know." said Lilac hastily, "And Natalya's one of the things I wanna talk about right now."

"I see. What's Natalya like then?" asked Torque, "Is she dangerous?"

"Pfft, you have no idea." Lilac muttered, "Dangerous doesn't begin to describe that vile woman. She's quite possibly the worst person I've ever had the misfortune to meet…aside from Lord Brevon that is. But still, she's a nasty piece of work Torque."

The Chaser nodded, taking in what Lilac had said. He had noted that the dragon had mentioned Lord Brevon's name and made a mental note not to bring up the fact he had attempted to invade Avalice. He could tell his Avalician friend had enough on her plate as it was worrying about Natalya coming to get the Dark Stone, he didn't need to give her something else to worry over. It was best she didn't know.

"What's so horrible about her then?" asked Torque.

"She's cold, ruthless, menacing and very cunning." Lilac explained, her face turning sour as she spoke, "She has strength and agility like you've never seen before, being able to floor me, Carol and Milla with ease the first time we fought, and she doesn't take no for an answer. She forced me and Carol to re-join the Red Scarves and join her in her big plan to ruin Christmas for everybody and rule Avalice last year. She used Milla as a hostage to make sure we played nice too. But the most sickening part of all is how racist she is…" she concluded her sentence with an angry sigh.

"Racist?" Torque piped quizzically.

"If you're not a dragon, you're not special in her eyes." the teen-girl grumbled, "She only considers me special because I'm a dragon and thinks that dragons are the superior race just because they inspired the three kingdoms we inhabit today. She's a sin to the dragon name and I hate her so much! Maybe just as much as Brevon, maybe more, maybe less, I don't know…but all-in-all, I can't stand that witch. Especially since she has the gall to say she loves me when in fact, she doesn't and was just trying to sweet-talk me. Well once she shows her ugly face again, I'll show her just how much I "love" her!" she spat venomously.

"Whoa, Natalya must really be a big deal for you…" Torque gasped.

"Ya think?" snorted Lilac, "Brevon's your personal arch-enemy right? Natalya's pretty much my "Lord Brevon" if you know what I mean. And given how she's native to Avalice, she's a personal enemy who won't be as easy to be rid of as Brevon. At least he's presumably run away into some dark corner of space and will never be seen again, leaving me with nothing but nightmares to remember him by. Natalya however, she can always return at any point and given we're on the same planet, I can't "escape" her so to say. Once she's thrown in jail for her crimes against Avalice I'll be free of her at last."

"Well me and Terra are happier than ever that we could lend a hand Lilac." said Torque kindly, "After all you've done for me, its our pleasure to help you deal with your biggest enemy."

"Thanks Torque." Lilac replied appreciatively, "That means a lot to me."

"You're welcome." the Chaser said with a kind smile on his face, "So this um, Dark Stone you're guarding. Didn't Milla say earlier that the Dark Stone turns people into dragons who want to destroy everything?"

"She did, and that's what the Dark Stone's evil power is." Lilac confirmed, "But I still don't get why Natalya's interested in the stone. This isn't her character at all, she doesn't want the world destroyed! So why would she want a doomsday gem like that?"

Torque thought for a moment before replying.

"Maybe she doesn't know what it can do?" he suggested.

"No Torque, she had a scroll about the Dark Stone itself. I'm pretty sure it would have told her what it can do." the draconian girl murmured, "I fear that maybe Natalya's gone so far off the deep end that she wants the world destroyed. I hope we can keep it out of her reach, I really do…"

"We will Lilac." Torque insisted, absent-mindedly putting his hand down on Lilac's and staring even deeper into her eyes, "I know we will. If we could stop Lord Brevon from succeeding at his goals then we can stop Natalya. She can't possibly be worse than Brevon."

"You're right, she's nothing compared to Brevon." Lilac agreed, "She hasn't got a big ship and a big army of mutants and robots or anything. It's just her and the Red Scarves and me and Carol have had plenty of practice with those jerks. Even Milla fared well against them when we fought them last year. Natalya won't beat us. I don't know what I'm so worried about."

"It's OK to be worried Lilac." the green alien replied softly, "We can't be brave about everything all the time. It's only natural for people to worry, no matter how brave they maybe. I should know…I'm a bit worrisome too. Something that Terra kinda wants me to get over."

Lilac nodded, sympathizing with Torque greatly. She could scarcely imagine the kind of situations he got himself into as a member of an alliance between worlds that possibly involved life and death. She imagined Torque must have worried a lot whenever he got into a fight with Brevon, especially since said fights resulted in the death of his original crew. She also remembered how the Chaser had worried over her, Carol and Milla when they had attempted to storm Brevon's ship. She and Torque were quite alike in some ways. Then the dragon noticed that Torque's hand was on hers and she smiled slyly at the Chaser.

"Are you touching my hand?" she snickered.

Torque suddenly realized what he was doing and he took his hand away quickly as if afraid Lilac's hand was going to burn him. He blushed bright red upon realizing this.

"Oh, um…sorry about that…" he blustered.

"No, no, it's OK. I was just…surprised that's all." Lilac insisted, "Pleasantly surprised that is."

Relieved that she was OK with this, Torque put his hand back down on Lilac's. He allowed himself to smile meekly at the dragon, still blushing as his friend smiled sweetly back at him. She looked so cute when she smiled and Torque wasn't sure why. Maybe Lilac was just a naturally wonderful looking creature.

"OK then." he said, "I'm still kinda surprised I did that though."

"It's fine Torque, honestly." said Lilac casually, "Besides, I really enjoy your company Torque. You're a great friend and if I'm honest…I wish I could see you more often. I miss you when you're back up in space fighting against whatever aliens there are out there."

She stared into Torque's handsome eyes as if trying to find something in them. Torque stared back into Lilac's beautiful eyes, not sure what to say. He could feel his heartbeat quickening as the two stared at each other. What was he feeling? Was he feeling affection for the beautiful dragon? Maybe he was in love? No, he couldn't be. He didn't have time for love, not in his line of duty. He couldn't be in love. Love was a weakness in the army. It was why Terra was only a friend to him and why he was only a friend to Terra. The Chasers couldn't be in love. Love could be exploited by the enemy and love could also do more harm than good for he or any of his crew. Yet he couldn't help but feel entranced by his purple-skinned friend. Could he break protocol and show that there was no shame in being in love? No. He couldn't. He couldn't break Lilac's heart, not when a relationship between them couldn't work with him devoted to his duty and having to serve in the Coalition of Planets. He couldn't give that up. But would rejecting Lilac break her heart even more? The Chaser had no idea what to do. He supposed he could give Lilac some comfort while he was here and then try and talk it out with her when they didn't have to worry about Natalya. He was sure Lilac could understand. Holding the dragon's hands, he cleared his throat.

"I'm…I'm glad you like me that much. I'm sorry that…that you miss me when I'm gone." Torque said, trying not to trip over his words too much, "If I could come to Avalice more often, I certainly would. Especially if it would make you happy Lilac."

"That's very sweet of you." said Lilac brightly, "I'll make sure to make the most of any visit you have to Avalice in return."

"That'll be swell." Torque responded.

Then the two did something strange. Lilac and Torque both closed their eyes and prepared to lean forward for a kiss. Lilac was rather excited as their lips were about to lock. She'd often wondered what it would be like to kiss a boy, especially a boy like Torque. The alien captain however was willing himself not to do it. Don't kiss her, you'll only make it worse for yourself! That's what his head was saying. But his heart ignored the protests of his head and he carried on leaning closer to Lilac. He wanted to give Lilac some pleasure to ease her anxieties, this would be the perfect thing to comfort her. She would like it, it would make her happier and that was what he wanted for his friend. But just as their lips were about to touch, Milla suddenly let out a shriek of terror. The dog was wide-eyed, alert and on her feet, jumping up and down frantically as if dancing on top of hot coals.

"Natalya's here! Natalya's here! And she's got the Red Scarves with her!"

Both dragon and Chaser stopped what they were doing and leaped onto their feet. What a rotten time for Natalya to show up! Now Lilac had more of a reason to subdue her and have her arrested for The Magister. With her locked up, she and Torque wouldn't be interrupted again. Lilac clenched her fists and readied herself for action as her hated nemesis and the Red Scarves all came into view. They were marching in unison with Natalya in front and Spade beside her. As usual, Spade wasn't too pleased having to be beside his abhorrent boss. He'd have much proffered to be as far away from the four-horned dragon as possible. Natalya stopped the march and held up a hand, telling the Red Scarves to stop marching and wait for her next command. The Red Scarves halted, a deadly silence falling all around as nobody moved or made a sound for a tense moment. Natalya's eyes narrowed in rage at the sight of Lilac and the Bassett family. She hadn't expected to run into them at all and was livid to see that they were once again, waiting to ruin her schemes. Couldn't that impudent child leave her alone for a minute?! She also caught sight of Torque and was instantly repulsed by his appearance. Who on Avalice was that thing with Lilac? An alien? No matter, just another body to add on her kill list as far as she was concerned. Lilac stood rigid, facing Natalya and staring her down as if hoping to magically cause her to burst into flames. Natalya ignored the Bassets and Torque and focused squarely on Lilac. The big-headed teen was all who mattered to her. Not wanting to show anger and annoyance in front of her former student, Natalya smiled an icy smile.

"Well, well, well…if it isn't my sweet little Lilac once again?" she purred, "Good…I still owe you an early grave."

Her smile quickly disappeared and was replaced by a scowl, the kind of expression she seemed very comfortable with expressing more than any other facial expression lately. As Lilac stared viciously at her former boss, Torque took a moment to observe his opponent. This must be the Natalya woman Lilac had been talking about. She looked draconic in appearance and Lilac had described her as being a dragon so it had to be her. Compared to Lord Brevon, Torque considered Natalya to look really underwhelming although he knew that being an Avalician, she wouldn't be as fearsome looking as Brevon. But he knew he couldn't even dare for a minute to underestimate her. Lilac had made it clear she was no pushover and thus, he couldn't treat her as such. He readied his blaster and prepared to shoot as Lilac answered Natalya's remark.

"Hey Natalya. Didn't expect to see me so soon did you?" she snarled.

"I will admit, I wasn't expecting you to be here lying in wait for me." the mauve-skinned dragon muttered bitterly, "Let me guess, you somehow know that I'm here for something and are here to stop me."

"Yes I am!" declared Lilac, "We found a scroll about the Dark Stone in your lair Natalya and…"

"You went into my lair?!" shrieked Natalya angrily, "How dare you! How dare you nose about my lair! You could have gotten yourself killed in the explosion I had set up in it to damage Shang Tu!"

"Why are you mad about that?" asked Milla.

"If Lilac had died in my lair, I wouldn't have had the pleasure of doing it myself!" ranted Natalya, "Though I suppose it would have been better if she had died so she couldn't take the scroll and find out what my next plan was…never mind. You've just set yourself up for a killing Lilac and if you don't get out of my way and let me claim the Dark Stone then I'll rip you to pieces! I'm feeling generous since I don't have time to waste so I'm giving you the option of standing down and saving yourselves an unnecessary beating while we take what's ours."

"Fat chance of that Natalya!" growled Lilac, "We're not moving! You're not getting the Dark Stone and you're not destroying Avalice you maniacal maniac!"

To Lilac's surprise, Natalya's response was just a loud, witchy cackle of mockery as if the teen-dragon had just said the most stupid thing in the world. How is it that she had beaten Natalya to a pulp last year and the villainess wasn't even remotely taking her seriously?

"You are such a fool Lilac! A great big fool! I'm not planning to destroy Avalice!" crowed Natalya, "Goodness me no, that would be an insult to the honour of the dragon that blessed us all with its grace and beauty. No…I'm going to use the Dark Stone's power to aggrandize myself. I'll study the stone and learn how to control it and with the power of the stone running through my veins, NOBODY will stop me from taking over this wretched world! Avalice will bow down to me and the dragon race will take its rightful place as ruler of the world!"

"Huh, you didn't tell me she was insane in the brain…" snorted Torque, "I think even Brevon's more sane than she is."

"She is indeed quite, quite mad Torque…and it's why we won't let her get that stone!" Lilac exclaimed, "She may not want to destroy Avalice as I had suspected but we still can't let her get that stone! Everybody, don't let her get into that cave! The Dark Stone must not fall into Natalya's hands!"

"Yeah!" exclaimed Milla.

"We'll defend that stone with our lives!" Miguel declared.

While the heroes were talking, Natalya leaned over to Spade and whispered to him.

"Me and the Scarves will keep the traitor and her playschool group busy, you sneak into the cave and get the stone. If Carol Tea is in the cave, kidnap her for me. I have a use for her." she hissed.

"Got it." Spade whispered back.

He knew why Natalya suspected Carol was in the Cave of Malevolence. Lilac NEVER went anywhere without Carol She wasn't around at the moment so she had to be in the cave. She couldn't be anywhere else. Spade had to wonder what Natalya had in mind for Carol. Hostage? Test subject for the Dark Stone? He would find out in good time. For now, he stood and waited as Lilac and her team prepared to attack. Natalya and the Red Scarves bent down into battle-ready stances, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. A tense moment passed before Natalya broke the silence with a loud cry.

"Red Scarves, ATTACK!" she bellowed.

The order was followed immediately. The red hooded ninjas all sprang into action and charged towards the Avalicians and Chaser. They knew that they weren't meant to kill either of them. They were only a distraction while Spade made off with their prize. But to make sure nobody suspected anything, they wouldn't be lenient in the fight. They couldn't make it too easy for them. One of the ninjas drew out a double mace, a long pole with two spiked balls attached to the end, and he began to swing it around. He aimed for Lilac, swinging the deadly weapon at the dragon but purposefully aiming for a spot that wouldn't kill her if he hit her, namely her legs. Lilac jumped up into the air, the mace sweeping past underneath her feet, and just as she was about to land back on the ground, she threw a kick straight into the ninja's face just above his nose. The mercenary stumbled backwards from the kick but soon found himself landing callously onto his back as his draconic opponent swept his legs out from underneath him with a roundhouse kick. The ninja groaned loudly and allowed himself a precious moment to recover from the attack. Smirking, Lilac turned away from the ninja and braced herself as two more Red Scarves came charging towards her. One was armed with a naginata; the other was armed with a katana. They both stabbed at Lilac but the dragon jumped up out of their way, leaving them to stab at the ground instead of their opponent. Lilac then curled up into a ball and boosted straight into the ninjas, leaving a trail of shining sparkles behind her as she attacked. The ninjas hardly knew what hit them as they were sent catapulting up into the air and crashing down metres upon metres away from the dragon. How was Lilac always able to beat them? They would never know though the Red Scarves often theorized that being a dragon might be the case.

With the Red Scarves out of the way, Lilac set her sights upon Natalya. Milla, her parents and Torque could handle them easily; they didn't need her to fight the Red Scarves. Natalya was hers and hers alone. The trench-coated woman herself seemed to have the same idea. She was already waiting for Lilac to attack and as the former Red Scarf came hurling towards her, she made her move too. Natalya ran at a speed that defied belief and she drew her hand back. She then launched a powerful punch and hit Lilac directly between the eyes just as she prepared to attack. Lilac's head snapped violently backwards from the punch and she found herself crashing down heavily onto her back. Her neck started throbbing like mad and she winced as pain flooded up to her skull. Had she just suffered whiplash? Didn't matter, she wouldn't let it slow her down. Lilac picked herself up just in time to dodge a powerful kick from Natalya. Her booted foot stomped down on empty ground as her opponent evaded her. Lilac then punched Natalya in the cheek, sending her stumbling sideways and giving Lilac the perfect opportunity to use her Dragon Cyclone attack. She twirled around and walloped her loathsome nemesis repeatedly with her tendrils. It was like being smacked by a demon spinning top. Natalya grunted with every hit her former student's attack landed on her and just before she could recover, Lilac bent down low and then kicked her in the knee. As the crime boss knelt down in pain, Lilac spun around on her heels and roundhouse kicked Natalya in the face. The mauve-skinned dragon fell down onto her side, grunting in pain and anger. She couldn't lose to this impudent child again! She wouldn't lose to her this time! Not now, not ever!

Lilac ran towards Natalya, eager to strike her down before she could get back up. But Natalya rolled out of the way and left Lilac to skid to a halt. Those precious seconds lost gave Natalya the time to pick herself up and strike back. She threw a punch at Lilac's solar plexus, hitting her exactly where she aimed and knocking the wind out of her. As Lilac tried to recover, Natalya spun around and whipped her with her scaly ponytail. Lilac grunted as she was walloped and just before she could regain her sense, Natalya threw an uppercut into the teen-dragon's chin. Lilac was whisked off her feet and sent hurling through the air in a rainbow arch. She crashed down back first onto the ground. The impact left her feeling winded, bruised and achy. It felt like she had been battered by a steel pole. Natalya was always a heavy hitter and Lilac knew that she couldn't let herself be hit by her too many times or Natalya would win. Forcing herself onto her feet, she yelped as her opponent came thundering towards her. Lilac spun around to the side, allowing her to dodge her opponent's attack and get behind her. She grabbed Natalya's coat and pulled on it, yanking the crime mistress's upper body backwards and causing her to overbalance. She fell down and Lilac took a moment to kick her in the shoulder before she could get back up. Yelling in pain, Natalya struck back with a claw to the chest on Lilac. The girl screamed as fresh, bloody cuts spread across her chest and she put a hand over them instinctively. This allowed Natalya to kick her, once again, in the solar plexus. It was her favourite target and a very effective one at that. Lilac coughed and spluttered as she tried to keep the air in her lungs from escaping. Laughing menacingly, Natalya ran towards Lilac and kneed her in the gut. Lilac collapsed onto the ground, coughing even louder. She swore that she was about to hack her own lungs up if this carried on. Natalya then pinned Lilac down with her foot pressing firmly against her back.

"Come on Lilac, I thought you could do better than that." snorted Natalya, "You beat me last year remember? Then again, you only beat me because I was distracted by Carol. Well I don't see her anywhere so I guess she can't distract me this time. That might explain why I'm winning."

"I'll beat you even without Carol!" snarled Lilac, "As long as I live, I'll always fight you and I'll never stop fighting until you're thrown in jail for the rest of your life!"

"I didn't know you cared about me so much." snorted Natalya, "Maybe my fondness for you is rubbing off onto you Lilac."

"Me? Fond of you? Like that's ever gonna happen!" retorted Lilac, "All I want is to see you incarcerated! That's how "fond of you" I am!"

She then freed herself from Natalya's subduing by elbowing her just above the ankle. Natalya yelped as she found herself falling forwards and just as she tried to regain her balance, Lilac picked herself up and rammed herself into the side of the dragon. This caused Natalya to lurch sideways and slam straight into the ground shoulder first. The pain that flooded through her shoulder and down to her hand was agonizing. The four-horned dragon worried for a moment that her right arm was going to go numb from the impact. She picked herself up, moving her arm around in circles to stop it from going numb. Lilac lunged at her but Natalya leapt out of her way and grabbed her tendrils with her left hand. She yanked on them, pulling Lilac backwards and making her screech in pain. Lilac was pulled backwards straight into Natalya, giving the perfect moment to kick her in the back and throw her forwards. Lilac landed on her hands and knees but the dragon refused to back down. She forced herself back onto her feet and caught Natalya's hands as she lunged at him. She kept the dragon's hands firmly away from her face as Natalya tried to claw her.

"While I'm glad you're not planning to destroy Avalice, I can't let you take the Dark Stone Natalya!" Lilac declared, "What if your plans go wrong? What if it still turns you into a destruction craving dragon? You can't meddle with such a deadly artefact! There's hundreds of ways your plans go wrong and the Dark Stone will cause to destroy the world you want to rule! Please, listen to me and stand down! It's for the good of the planet!"

"The day I listen to you will be the day I declare I'm not a dragon…which is never going to happen!" snarled Natalya, "Unlike you and your what-ifs, I'm going to try taming the stone's power and once it's under my control, I'll be unstoppable and you will be dead!"

"Not a chance!" Lilac screeched.

Then then pulled on Natalya's wrists, bringing her closer to her so she could thrust her head forwards and into Natalya's nose. The head butt hit home and left Natalya screeching in agony as blood oozed out of her broken nose. Despite training herself to be tolerant of pain, no amount of training could possibly have taught her how to deal with pain as great as this. Lilac had literally become the first Avalician ever to hurt her enough to make her scream in pain. The former Red Scarf just smirked; pleased Natalya was in so much agony. Her loathsome nemesis deserved it. As the mauve-dragon continued screeching and wiping away at her nose, the lilac-dragon threw herself into Natalya's stomach and brought her crashing down onto her back, intending to give Natalya much more pain to add to the pain in her nose.

Meanwhile, Milla, Miguel, Lela and Torque were having an easy time with the Red Scarves. One ninja came charging towards Milla with a look of death in his eyes and he had a double mace in his hands. Milla screamed and summoned a shield in front of her to protect herself as the ninja began swinging the mace at him. The deadly weapon whacked feebly against the shield, doing no harm whatsoever. Milla's shields were not easy to break through. Not even Serpentine's guns had been able to penetrate them. The gifted hound then fired a beam from her shield, hitting the Red Scarf and throwing him off his feet. It felt like he had been punched in the face by a really powerful fist. Another Red Scarf threw shuriken at Milla but she blocked his attacks with ease, the ninja stars ricocheting off of the shield harmlessly. The Red Scarf then charged towards Milla, hoping to viciously harm her but the child thrust her shield at him, walloping him full on and throwing him backwards. The dog then summoned a magical green cube to her hands and held it above her head, waiting for another Red Scarf to attack her. One did, this one armed with nunchakus. He charged towards the young puppy but Milla threw the block and hit him in the face. The blow knocked him out instantly. Milla cheered, pleased she was doing so well in the fight.

Miguel and Lela were both teaming up to fight off their opponents. Having been forced to join the Red Scarves themselves by Natalya long before Brevon ever landed on Avalice, they knew some of their moves and could fight well enough against the Red Scarves. They considered this fight getting even with the scarves for forcing them to be part of the gang. A Red Scarf lunged at Lela with a katana in his hands. Lela stepped aside and grabbed the ninja's hands. She twisted his wrists, numbing his hands and wrenching the katana out of his grip. Then Lela spun the katana around and slashed the ninja in the leg. She didn't like using a weapon but she supposed it made her more even since unlike her daughter, she didn't have powers to fight with. A weapon was better than nothing. Another Red Scarf came running towards Lela with a sai, a three pronged dagger, in his hand. Lela swung the katana and clashed weapons with the ninja. The katana was a weapon with a longer blade so Lela could attack without having to get too close. The mother dog swung the curved sword at the ninja, nearly knocking the sai out of his hand as the weapons made contact again. Then Lela kicked the ninja in the groin, stunning him long enough for her to wallop him on the head with the handle of her katana. The hound smiled as her opponent crumpled. She didn't like fighting much but she admitted, this was kind of satisfying. Her husband seemed to agree with her as he flat-punched a ninja just above his nose and knocked him down onto his back. A ninja with a staff came charging at him and swung the staff at the red-haired hound. Miguel ducked and then grabbed the staff. He and the ninja wrestled with it, trying to keep hold of it and yank it out of the other's hands respectively. Miguel won the fight by kicking his opponent in the gut. The staff now in his hands, he swung it around and walloped the ninja in the side of his face, knocking him out instantly. The father dog smiled, strangely finding himself enjoying what he was doing. Maybe learning to fight had been more fun than he could have imagined.

Torque didn't have to do an awful lot against the Red Scarves. He had jet boots that allowed him to fly and keep out of the way of the attacking ninjas. They could barely reach him and they certainly couldn't hit him. The Chaser fired his guns, the pistols set onto stun mode for he wasn't interested in killing any of them. They were thieves and assassins but it was not his business to determine their fates. That was Avalice's decision to make, not his. The Red Scarves ran for their lives, fearing they were going to be killed by the laser blasts. Torque fired at them, sending them scattering like ants and keeping his eyes open for any attacks. He sighed to himself a little contently.

"Well this is a breath of fresh air compared to Brevon." he said, "These guys aren't even trying to beat us. I guess it helps that they can't hit me though. It's hard to believe Lilac used to be one of them."

Try as he might, he couldn't even for a minute imagine Lilac in a Red Scarf hood and neckerchief. The image just seemed impossible to associate with a hero as noble and heroic as Lilac. He pushed the image out of his way as he fired more shots at the Red Scarves. He did manage to hit one of them, the stun blast knocking him out before he knew he had been hit. Pleased, Torque turned his attention to any remaining ninjas. There was still plenty of them left but he could see that the hounds and he were winning. He glanced over at Lilac and caught her throwing an uppercut into Natalya's chin. She seemed to have her fight under control too. But little did he or anybody else realize was that one Red Scarf was missing from the battle. It was Spade, and he was already inside the Cave of Malevolence, leaving his gang and leader to fight against the Red Scarf deserter, her hound friends and the alien with them. He could hardly believe his luck and knew that his luck was going to get better when he reached the Dark Stone…

* * *

><p>Deep inside the cave, Carol and Terra were sitting with their backs against the wall and staring intently at the Dark Stone as if wishing something interesting would happen to it. As far as Carol was concerned, the stone spontaneously combusting would be definitely be interesting. It would be nice if the stone could destroy itself and save everyone a load of grief. Time had passed slowly in the cave and Carol was finding herself getting increasingly bored of just waiting for something to happen. Terra seemed equally as bored but her purple eyes never once wavered away from the Dark Stone. The wildcat presumed that Terra was a dedicated woman, never letting anything divert her attention from the task at hand. Would she willingly sit here forever if it meant doing her duty? She seemed capable of doing that. Hoping she wouldn't mind, Carol decided to break the silence.<p>

"Hmm…so um…Terra? You feeling bored at all?" she asked.

"There's no such thing as boredom Carol. There's just anticipation for the enemy and the action that follows." Terra replied, still not taking her eyes away from the stone, "We wait for action and then when action comes, we react. We can hardly afford being bored. That doesn't make action come any quicker."

"Eh, I suppose you're right…" Carol murmured, "Anyway, you don't mind having a conversation do you?"

"Eh, why not? After all, I'm new to Avalice so maybe I could learn some things about it while we pass the time." the female Chaser replied, "So tell me Carol, what's it like living on this world?"

"It's pretty cool." the feline tomboy replied, "I love my world. It's beautiful, there's major cool places to visit and the rides I have on my bike are totally awesome! Avalice is the place to have a ride on a cool motorcycle like mine! And also, it's awesome spending time with my best friends. Lilac and Milla are the best."

"You seem quite close." said Terra kindly, "It's like my friendship with Torque. We're very close too."

"Cool. So um, do you like Torque…as in like REALLY like him? Ya know? Like a boy loves a girl?" asked Carol curiously.

"Oh no, nothing like that at all." the turquoise alien responded, "I don't have time for romance, especially when you're fighting against Lord Brevon and trying to save the worlds he conquered. No, me and Torque are just friends. True he's kinda cute but honestly, I'm not interested in romance at this time."

"Bummer." the green-furred cat murmured, "Though I suppose Lilac's happy about that."

"You think she has a thing for Torque?" giggled Terra.

"She seems a _little _too happy to see him for it to be just a friendship thing." snickered Carol, "I think she loves him. Which I don't mind of course, I think Lilac and Torque would make a cute couple."

"I hope Lilac won't be too disappointed to learn that a relationship between her and Torque can't work." Terra sighed sadly, "Torque hasn't got time for love either. I'm sorry but when you're a Chaser, you can scarcely afford to bother about sentimental feelings like that."

Carol wasn't sure she liked the sound of that. Being a Chaser sounded like you had to be closed off and nothing but focused and serious. It sounded pretty boring a life to live. Surely she could convince Terra that there was more to life than just doing one's duty? She decided against it, she didn't want to offend the young lieutenant. The wildcat decided to change the subject.

"So um, how's it going with Lord Brevon?" she asked, "He kinda got away after Lilac beat the tar outta him so we don't know anything about what he's been up to lately."

Terra cringed. Did Carol have to bring up Brevon?! She was hoping she could spend the whole visit without having to talk about him but now she had no choice but to answer Carol.

"Oh he's been suffering quite badly from his defeat here." she explained, "He's a laughing stock of the galaxy and nobody takes him seriously anymore. "Lord Brevon, the guy who got beaten by a puny animal girl! What a lark!" is what a lot of people say about him. Even Torque's new crew doesn't take him seriously. But since he killed my brother, I still can't help but fear him somewhat…I'm amazed I managed to sneak on-board his ship, spy on him and tell Torque what his next plan was so we could foil them."

"And what plans were they?"

"Just another take-over attempt. We sent him running away with his tail between his legs though."

"Awesome!" squealed Carol, "I bet you'll catch him eventually!"

"I bloody well hope so…" sighed Terra, "I want him dead or imprisoned after what he's done to my best friend's previous crew and all the other heroes that fell to his blade…especially Phoenix. His death is the one I want him to pay for the most, being my brother and all."

"You and me both sister." muttered Carol, "I'm still mad at what he did to Lilac…"

Her sentence was cut short by a strange noise. It sounded like somebody had accidentally kicked a stone somewhere in the cave. Carol leapt up onto her feet, all her senses alert for the faintest sign of danger. Somebody was in the cave and Carol didn't think she liked that thought. Was it Natalya? A Red Scarf? Somebody else? Maybe it was just Lilac checking on her. Carol stepped towards where the sound had come from and peered into the darkness. The Dark Stone's malevolent glow only lit the cave up for so far and even then, it didn't light it up all that much. Carol was sure she could make out a faint shape just outside of the area of the stone's glow. What was it? The wildcat hoped that it would turn out she was seeing things and that she could forget about it. But then suddenly, a razor-sharp object shot out of the shadows and narrowly missed Carol's arm as she dodged. Terra was up on her feet in seconds and she watched the object embed itself into the Dark Stone's plinth. What was it? She ran over and picked it out of the plinth. It was a playing card, an Ace of Spades. Carol knew what card meant. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, glaring at the shadows ahead of her.

"Alright Spade, show yourself! You can't hide from me!" the wildcat snarled.

Strangely enough, Spade did as he was told. The ninja panda emerged from the shadows, smirking at Carol and Terra as if he, in a way, held all the cards in his hand. That cocky smirk annoyed Carol more than anything else about him. The wildcat had once thought Spade was cool but then after he had committed a murder, she wanted nothing more than to beat him up and make him sorry he ever crossed the line. Terra looked at the Avalician curiously.

"Who's the weirdo with neckerchief then?" she asked.

"Spade. He's a scummy murderer who works with the Red Scarves and he's a total jerk who grinds my gears!" growled Carol, "And I bet he's here to get the Dark Stone! What's the matter Spade? Is Natalya to chicken to fight us anymore after Lilac beat the crap outta her?"

"Natalya's outside fighting Lilac right now." snorted Spade, "She's the distraction. I'm here to get the Dark Stone and if you don't get out of my way, I'm gonna cut you to ribbons!"

"Fat chance of that asshole!" retorted Carol, "You get out of this cave before I kick the stuffing out of you!"

"I'd like to see you try." the panda scoffed, "Fancy a game of cards? I have some smokin' aces up my sleeve…"

He then proceeded to swipe his hand through the air, sending a horde of razor playing cards hurling towards Carol and Terra. All of them were kings and queens. Carol threw herself down low as Terra whipped out her pistols and shot at all the cards, not once missing one as her pistols blazed away. With the cards now destroyed, Carol then sprang back up onto her feet and scampered towards Spade on all fours. The panda boosted towards her and threw a terrific kick to the cat's face. He felt no regrets upon kicking his former comrade. Carol was a traitor and she deserved to be beaten up for it, even if he had no love for his boss. The wildcat cried out in pain as Spade's foot slammed hard into her face and knocked her back. Spade then jumped into the air and threw a bunch of cards at her, four jacks and two diamond cards. Carol dodged the attack and waited for her card-wielding nemesis to land down on the ground again. The moment Spade landed, she jumped towards him and unleashed a rapid kicking attack that threw Spade across the room and into the wall upon impact. The Red Scarf winced as he hit the wall. He'd forgotten how tough Carol was but he wasn't about to let her beat him now, not if it meant being punished by Natalya again. He picked himself up and boosted into Natalya, leaving strange, green afterimages as he did so. He and Carol ended up unleashing a rapid round of fisticuffs on one another, blocking and striking each other several times. Terra decided to turn the odds into Carol's favour by running up behind Spade and kicking him in the small of his back. The panda screamed and Carol took advantage of this, roundhouse kicking Spade across the room and into another wall. She punched the air triumphantly.

"Oh yeah! Score one for the wildcat!" she cried "Thanks for the help Terra."

"Welcome." Terra said casually, "After all, we girls gotta stick together. Girl power you know?"

The two girls then high-fived. Carol turned back around to face Spade but to her surprise, the panda had disappeared! The wildcat cursed loudly. Spade was well known for being able to meld into the shadows somehow. She shouldn't have taken her eyes away! She looked around desperately for Spade, wondering where he was. Terra looked around too, her senses vigilant as she searched for the ninja. Then suddenly, she felt a sharp clout across the back of her head that made a surprisingly loud sound for a simple smack. Terra collapsed onto the ground just by the Dark Stone's plinth, knocked unconscious from the blow she had received. Carol gasped in horror and ran over to Terra.

"Oh my gosh! What happened?" she asked frantically, "Wake up Terra! Wake up!"

Then something strange happened. Somebody reached out behind Carol and untied her trademark red neckerchief from around her neck. Carol spun around, expecting to find her fist colliding with somebody's face but she saw that there was nobody around. Spade was being very elusive, that much was certain. Carol, scanned the scenery, hoping to find Spade and take him out. Then suddenly, her red neckerchief returned, but it didn't tie itself back around her neck. Instead, it tied itself around her mouth and the back of her head! The wildcat let out a muffled yelp as Spade gagged her, laughing smoothly at her.

"I still wonder why you wear that red scarf considering you're not one of us anymore." he sneered, "Well now it's silencing you. The Red Scarves always strike back as you know."

Carol grumbled angrily from behind her gag and she tried to break free of Spade's grip. But the panda was strong, surprisingly so. He had the body of an agile athlete yet he seemed to be as strong as he was fast. Spade cackled at his rival and then he smacked Carol in the temple. The blow knocked her out instantly and Spade found the weight of Carol's body suddenly increasing as she slumped. Spade dropped Carol onto the ground, purposefully doing it carelessly, and he walked over to the Dark Stone. He took out a bag that he had attached to his belt and making sure not to touch the stone, he slung the bag over it. The stone wouldn't harm him now it was in a bag. Natalya had warned him what would happen if he just grabbed it with his bare hands and thus, had given him the bag to use. Spade hung the bag back on his belt and then slung Carol's unconscious body over his shoulder.

"Sorry to take you with me Carol, but Natalya would like a word with you…" he murmured.

He still wondered why Natalya wanted the treacherous feline. Hopefully it involved whipping her and she'd get more lashes than what he had received. Satisfied, Spade proceeded to walk out of the cave with his prizes. He left the unconscious Terra alone in the deep dark cave to wake up and be scared that she can't see. He had succeeded at his task and Natalya was going to be so pleased with him. He ran out of the cave and found himself back outside in the bright sunshine again. He loved the dark but he didn't mind being out in the light again. He could see that his gang were losing the fight with Lilac and her team. Even Natalya seemed to be struggling, her nose still oozing with blood from the head-butt she had received. Spade smiled. Seeing Natalya bleeding for once made him happy. Any pain Natalya received made him happy. Pity Lilac couldn't just knock her out already but he supposed that could come later. Spade ran over to Natalya, catching the dragon's attention as he waved his free hand to her. The crime boss saw Spade and abandoned Lilac, running over to her faithful henchmen as quickly as she could. Lilac tried to chase her but some Red Scarves stopped her from running after her. Once the two were face-to-face, Spade gave her the news.

"I've got the Dark Stone and I've got Carol!" he declared, "Mission complete!"

"Well done Spade!" cried Natalya, wiping away the blood snaking down her nose to her lips, "The plan is a success! We're on a winning streak lately, I'm impressed."

"Seems fortune favours us." said Spade casually, "Shall we go now?"

"Yes, let's." agreed Natalya, "We'll return to the hideout and then I'll take Carol and the Dark Stone somewhere that I can start studying the Dark Stone. Carol will make a nice test subject."

Secretly, she was actually going to bring both items to Lord Brevon so they could commence with their plan. But she couldn't let Spade know that she was working with Lord Brevon. She knew that Spade hadn't been pleased with him killing his father. If he knew, he would jeopardize the mission. She had to keep him in the dark for the plan's sake. Then once she'd disposed of Brevon, she would become an unstoppable menace and kill Spade and the Red Scarves. What use would she have for them when she was an invincible force of nature? Spade nodded, understanding Natalya's plan. He wondered why she had to be secretive about her studying of the Dark Stone but he didn't dare ask. He just went along with his boss as Natalya turned around and called to the Red Scarves.

"SCARVES! We're retreating! Back to our hideout NOW!" she bellowed.

The Red Scarves obeyed and any who weren't unconscious quickly picked up their unconscious comrades and ran off after Natalya and Spade, leaving a bewildered Lilac to only stand and watch despairingly as her worst enemy got away again. But what puzzled her was the fact the Red Scarves were retreating. Why? Surely they wouldn't give up so easily, especially Natalya? The hound family and Torque watched the Red Scarves leave, utterly perplexed at their sudden forfeit.

"Is that it?" asked Torque, "They just run off home?"

"We beat them! Yay! The Red Scarves are beaten!" cheered Milla.

"I don't think they were…" said Lilac gravely, "They never give up this easily. Especially their leader…something's not right."

"Not right indeed." murmured Lela, "By the way, did anybody see Spade in the fight at all? I don't recall seeing him anywhere…"

"Neither do I." said Miguel.

"Yes, I didn't see him either." Lilac mused, "Could it be that…oh no…oh no! NO!"

"What is it Lilac?" asked Torque worriedly.

"Spade must have sneaked into the cave while we were fighting!" the dragon screeched, "Natalya was just distracting us! And if they've retreated, it must mean they've got the Dark Stone! Damn it! She's outfoxed us AGAIN!"

Lilac stomped the ground in rage. This was the second time today that Natalya had made a complete fool out of her! Why couldn't she ever be a step ahead of the evil dragon?! Was Natalya really too smart for her? Was she really fighting a battle she couldn't hope to win? Lilac only knew one thing: she had lost yet again. But worse was yet to come. Just as Lilac finished letting her anger out, somebody staggered out of the cave, looking very groggy as she did so. It was Terra, clutching her forehead and holding a pistol that had a beam of light stretching out ahead of it. She switched off the light, no longer needing it now she was out of the dark cave.

"Oooooh man, Spade must have hit me really hard…" she moaned, "My head's killing me!"

Spade. She had mentioned Spade. That only confirmed Lilac's theory on why the Scarves had retreated. Lilac ran up to Terra quickly, anxious to hear what had happened. Torque ran up to Terra and put an arm around her.

"Terra! You OK? What happened?" asked Torque.

"Did Spade get the Dark Stone?!" shrieked Lilac worriedly.

"I'm sorry…I'm really sorry…but he did. And worse…" Terra muttered sadly, "I think he's got Carol. After waking up, she wasn't there and I couldn't find her no matter how many times I swept my gun's torch over the area. I'm very sorry…"

Lilac's blood ran cold. Spade had not only stolen the Dark Stone, but he had kidnapped Carol?! Why had he done that?! Lilac didn't think about that. All she could think of was Carol in Natalya's claws, vulnerable and helpless before her as she inflicted great harm upon her. Or worse…used the Dark Stone on her! Upon hearing the news, Milla burst into tears whereas Torque and the Basset parents gasped in horror. Lilac began to shake. Was she about to faint? She wasn't sure she could even do that. All she could do was shake frantically over what she had heard.

"NO!" shrieked Lilac, "Spade's got Carol?! Oh no…Natalya's gonna kill her, I just know it! Oh no, Carol!"

"We've gotta save her!" whimpered Milla, "We've just gotta!"

"Why the hell did you let this happen Terra?!" snarled Lilac, pointing accusingly at the she-alien, "You were supposed to guard the stone with Carol! Why didn't you stop Spade?!"

"Well there's the tiny insignificant fact I was KNOCKED OUT!" bellowed Terra, "Don't you dare blame Carol's abduction on me! Spade sneaked up behind me and knocked me out! How was I supposed to stop that?!"

"Lilac, I know that you're mad at the fact Carol's been kidnapped but you can't go pointing fingers at people." said Torque firmly, "It's nobody's fault we lost. If anything, I shouldn't have sent Terra in there with Carol. She's not familiar with Spade and that was our disadvantage."

"You're…you're right…" said Lilac sadly, "I'm, I'm sorry Terra. I'm…I'm just so scared for Carol right now! Oh what's gonna happen to her?!"

"Well I'm claiming responsibility for her abduction and because of that, I'm gonna help you get her back." declared Terra, "It's the least I can do."

"Thank you, I appreciate it." said Lilac graciously, "For now, we've gotta get back to my treehouse and rest for a minute. We're in no position to rescue Carol after that tough workout. Once we're ready, we'll find the Red Scarves and save Carol. And also get the Dark Stone back."

"Hopefully we won't have to tell The Magister that we lost it…" said Miguel nervously.

Lilac nodded. She had promised The Magister she wouldn't fail this task, and yet she had done so. She didn't want The Magister thinking she couldn't be trusted for a task anymore. Sighing, the defeated heroes began walking away from the Cave of Malevolence. As they walked away though, they didn't notice that they were being watched. Syntax had been keeping out of view for the whole fight and now it was her turn to come into play. Silently, she followed the heroes. Once she followed them to Lilac's treehouse, she'd give the coordinates and then they could destroy it in order to give Lilac more grief for the Dark Stone to feast upon…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Jesus, Lilac just can't win can she?! The Dark Stone's been taken and Carol's been kidnapped! How can things get any worse?! Oh shit...I really shouldn't have said that! Join me next time to see just how much worse Lilac's situation can get...<strong>_


	8. Chapter 7: Breaking Point

_Chapter 7: Breaking Point_

Carol had no idea how much time had passed since Spade had knocked her out. Had she been out for an hour? Two hours? Maybe just half an hour? For all she know, it could have just been five minutes. All the tomboy wildcat knew was that she had been out for some length of time and now she was finally waking up. As she opened her eyes, memories of the fight with Spade in the Cave of Malevolence flooded back to her. She and Torque's best friend Terra had been inside the cave defending the Dark Stone from Natalya. Spade had been the one to sneak into the cave and then get into combat with the two girls. Unbelievably, at least in Carol's mind, she and Terra had lost. The female Chaser had been knocked out via a blow to the head from the ninja panda and then Spade had dispatched of Carol by gagging her with her own neckerchief and then knocking her out. The thought of her being gagged made Carol move her lips about to see if it was still there. Her lips pushed against nothing but air. Her neckerchief had been removed and she could now speak again. She didn't suppose it had been put back on her neck for she couldn't feel anything there. The feline Avalician fully opened her eyes and found herself staring at something strange. She was in a room, but this room didn't match any room that suited Avalice. This room was hi-tech and full of devices and technology beyond anything Avalice was capable of. It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie she had watched during a lazy day with Lilac once. Was she in a laboratory? Or some kind of ship? If so then who owned it and why was she here? Carol wasn't sure she liked being in here. There was something unnerving about the whole thing. She'd been kidnapped by Spade and now she was waking up here. What was going on?

The green-furred cat tried to leave the room but to her surprise, she wasn't sitting or lying down. She was upright but there was something keeping her arms and legs from moving. Carol then realized what was going on. She was shackled to a slab of metal, her body in an X shape with heavy metal shackles around her wrists and ankles. There was even one around her waist. Frightened, Carol pulled on her limbs. She was very scared. She was restrained for a reason and it likely wasn't a good reason. She had to get away and fast before anything bad could happen to her. But try was she might, the wildcat was stuck fast. She was strong, but nowhere near strong enough to break free of thick metal shackles. They were designed to hold even the strongest of people, people much stronger than Carol could ever hope to be. Giving up, Carol began to panic. She started to breathe in and out very quickly. Why was she here? Why was she chained up? Would Lilac save her? She wanted more than ever for Lilac to show up and save her from this nightmare. Maybe this whole thing was a nightmare and she'd wake up safe and sound in her bed back at the treehouse. Carol closed her eyes very tightly and then opened them again. Nothing changed. She was still chained up in a hi-tech room. Carol's face fell. This was NOT a nightmare. The fact it wasn't a nightmare made Carol panic more than ever.

"Oh...where am I?" she asked herself, "Why am I here? Why did Spade bring me here? Why did I even get kidnapped by the asshole?! I bet Lilac's worried sick about me now! Oh I hope she can find me and get me outta here..."

"Sash Lilac will be reunited with you eventually Carol Tea..." purred a familiar, slithering voice that made the wildcat's skin crawl.

Her head turned to her right side and she let out a gasp that seemed to contain all the breath she had in her lungs. Standing in the doorway and smiling wickedly at her was Natalya the Lead Scarf herself. Carol's face contorted with rage. So it was her who had brought her here, not Spade after all! But how did Natalya find a hi-tech room like this? Avalice wasn't exactly a primitive world for it had trucks with robot claws on and a giant robot praying mantis in the Relic Maze but Avalice wasn't this hi-tech! Carol then had a horrible thought. Were she and Natalya not even on Avalice anymore? There was only one way to find out.

"Natalya!" Carol hissed angrily, "Let me go right this second! If you don't, you're gonna be sorry!"

"Oh Carol I'm hurt, I went through all this trouble bringing you here and you want me to let you go? Some people are so ungrateful..." Natalya sneered, a heavy tone of sarcasm carried in her words.

"I don't wanna be anywhere with you Little Miss Creepypants!" snapped Carol, "Where are we anyway? This doesn't look like a place on Avalice..."

"Oh it IS a place on Avalice...but it's not a place FROM Avalice." explained Natalya, "This is an alien ship my dear. We are in the presence of extra-terrestrial transport. Isn't that, as you might say, "cool"?"

"Alien ship?" asked a very puzzled Carol, "How can we be on an alien ship?"

"How do you think you stupid girl?" snorted Natalya, striding up to her prisoner, "We're being blessed by the presence of aliens. And the alien who owns this ship is somebody you might recognize..."

Then right on cute, somebody else strode into the room. The wildcat's ears drooped down in fear as she heard the terrible stomping sounds coming from just outside the door. She know what that sound meant. But it couldn't be...surely it wasn't? The thing entered the room and strode up to Carol, his loud stomping feet spelling death for her with every step. The feline tomboy let out a shriek of terror as the supposed owner of the ship stopped in front of her, arms folded and a horrible, evil smirk spreading out across his lips. The very sight of this thing was enough to make Carol more afraid than ever before for standing before her, was the one thing in the world that was scarier than Natalya ever was.

"LORD BREVON?!" Carol screeched.

It all made sense now. The alien ship and the hi-tech appearance of the room belonged to Brevon! But why had Natalya brought her to him of all people? The huge, green-skinned alien's response to Carol's terror was nothing more than an evil cackle that made the cat shudder.

**"I'm willing to bet that you're very surprised to see me in the flesh again, aren't you little one?" **he purred softly.

"No...no it can't be! Not you! Anyone but you!" whimpered Carol.

**"To your utter disappointment, it is indeed me." **sneered Brevon, **"Here to unleash havoc upon this vapid world and make it pay for embarrassing me and my army."**

"But Terra...she told me that you tried to take over a planet and you ran away with your tail between your legs!" the imprisoned cat protested, "You can't possibly be here now!"

**"I guess the commander and his female accomplice didn't tell you that it was this world I came to?" **snorted Brevon, **"And contrary to what the Chasers believe, I managed to sneak through their defences with this ship's cloaking device. They don't know I'm here because I have managed to land on this rock with my ship invisible to the naked eye. That's how I'm here."**

"And I suppose you wanna destroy the world?" asked Carol nervously.

**"Exactly." **the alien growled menacingly.

"Well good luck with that!" the feline Avalician spat defiantly, "When Lilac finds out you're here, she's gonna kick your ass and send you back into the dark void you came from! You've made a big mistake coming back here again Lord Grumpy-Pants!"

**"The only mistake I made was not killing that purple-skinned wretch when I had her in my hands..." **Brevon muttered, **"But now, I will not let her live this time. When she comes into my parlour, she'll be at the top of my execution list." **

"Not if she beats you to death first!" snapped Carol. She then glowered over at Natalya and said "Please don't tell me you're working for this monster!"

Natalya grinned wickedly before answering her prisoner's question.

"Yes, yes I am working for this "monster" beside me." she crowed, "I want Lilac dead, he wants Lilac dead so we're even. We're helping each other to take out the one who ruined our reputations."

"But, but, but he wants Avalice destroyed!" protested Carol, "Please tell me you're not in on his plan! I thought you wanted to conquer our world?"

"Not anymore." lied Natalya, "It doesn't want me as their leader? Then it doesn't deserve to live. I want Avalice destroyed just like Brevon does. And maybe I'll join his crew and have a happy life conquering worlds with him."

**"And given how successful your mission was, I think you'll make a fine addition to my army." **Brevon purred, almost seductively at his temporary friend.

"Ugh, and just when I thought you two couldn't get any creepier..." Carol muttered, a sick feeling tingling in her stomach, "You're match made in hell, both of you."

**"If you don't want to die then I suggest keeping the insults to a minimum." **growled Brevon.

"Whatever Ugly Mug." the cat sighed, "So if you want Lilac dead, why am I here?"

**"My comrade here," **Brevon motioned to Natalya, **"Has gotten a very precious relic that she calls the Dark Stone. She tells me that it plays on negative emotions and corrupts innocents. I like the sound of that. And my plan to get revenge on your draconian friend involves using the Dark Stone on her."**

"But Lilac's too pure and good for the Dark Stone to corrupt, so we're going to amplify her negative emotions." crowed Natalya, "Kidnapping you and taking the Dark Stone will have her worried sick. Imagine how much worse it will get when she sees you...in a terrible state."

Carol's eyes opened wide enough to fill her entire head.

"No...please...no! You're...you're gonna torture me aren't you?!" the biker cat gasped.

**"Imagine how much the dragon's negative emotions will be amplified when she sees you, her closest comrade I believe, in a similar state that she was in when she first met me." **Brevon purred sinisterly,** "I imagine the Dark Stone will feast upon them like a vulture to a corpse."**

"NO! NO, NO, NO!" Carol screamed, her eyes brimming with tears as she writhed around, desperate to get free, "No please, you can't do this! Natalya, you can't let him torture an old student of yours right?!"

"You forget Carol, I don't care about you." the dragon sniffed, "Brevon's welcome to kill you for all I care..."

**"And I shall after the plan is completed." **Brevon announced proudly, **"I wonder where Syntax is at this moment. I hope she's found the dragon girl's home at last..."**

Just as he finished talking, a green flash appeared behind him and seconds later, the flash was replaced by the familiar figure of Syntax. The robotic servant loomed behind Brevon and spoke to him.

"Good evening sir. It may interest you to know that the location of the dragon girl's habitat has been found." she reported.

**"Where?" **asked Brevon, turning around to face the fem-bot.

Syntax stepped back and showed her master a hologram of Lilac's treehouse. Carol's heart missed a beat as she saw this. Brevon now knew where Lilac lived! He could go over to her treehouse and kill her right now! Or maybe do something worse! Brevon cackled at this serendipitous find as he observed the hologram. Natalya was a little surprised. This was seriously where Lilac lived? Just some treehouse? She thought somebody of Lilac's reputation would be living somewhere a bit more opulent than a treehouse.

"It is in a location known as "Dragon Valley"." Syntax explained.

"Dragon Valley...could Lilac be anymore obvious?" snorted Natalya, "She may as well have put a neon sign saying "I live here"! Then again, it's so obvious that it's overlooked...pretty clever of my former student." she muttered, cursing herself for giving Lilac a compliment.

**"Excellent find!" **the alien with the huge unibrow cackled delightedly, **"Now we can commence with the next stage of our plan!"**

Natalya took a letter out from her trench coat and handed it to Syntax. She stuck it on the end of the robot's tendril.

"Take this to the treehouse and slide it under Lilac's door." she ordered, "Then once she leaves, make sure the Basset family and that green freak are locked up and then burn the house down with them inside."

"As you wish." droned Syntax, teleporting out of the ship with the letter that would spell doom for Lilac. The moment she left, Carol looked nervously over at her former leader.

"W-w-what's th-that l-l-letter about?" she asked, fearing she already knew the answer.

"It'll tell Lilac to come to this ship, alone that is, lest we get the pleasure of killing you." sneered Natalya, her smile dripping with sadism as she grinned at Carol.

**"If she dares bring anybody with her, especially my Chaser enemies, we will kill you." **gloated Brevon, **"She has no choice but to come alone."**

"And you told that robot-thingy to trap Milla, her parents, Torque and Terra inside and burn her house down once she left..." Carol said hoarsely, "Is...is that part of making Lilac crack for the Dark Stone?"

**"You're getting wiser..."** the alien warlord sneered, **"You've finally figure out our plan. I am impressed."**

"Carol is often wiser than she pretends to be." snickered Natalya.

"I can't believe how horrible you two are!" cried Carol, disgusted with Brevon and Natalya's plan and her body full of hate for the insidious duo, "Well actually, yes I can believe how horrible you two are! You're gonna murder five people, destroy my best friend's house and then torture me just to break her?! Well I've got news for you two creeps! Lilac is SOOOOO gonna kill you both when she gets here! She won't let the Dark Stone break her and you two will get your just deserts! YOU'RE BOTH DEAD!" she finished with a bellow that channelled all the hate in her body into those three words.

**"We'll see about that..." **sneered Brevon, not at all fazed by the wildcat's threats, **"Let's see how defiant you are after I treat you to the hell I subjected your dragon friend to."**

**"**I am SO going to enjoy this..." Natalya purred sadistically.

Brevon smiled at his comrade's enthusiasm. She seemed to share his taste in inflicting pain upon others. It'd be a shame to waste her but as Brevon knew, he'd rather not trust an Avalician to be part of his army. Better safe than sorry as he firmly believed. The powerful warlord then marched over to a control panel that stood nearby Carol's restraint bed and was connected to it via a large pipe that snaked around to the back of the bed. With no remorse or sympathy for his prisoner, Brevon pressed a button on the control panel. Carol's heart began to beat so fast that she could barely feel the individual beats. Her head rained with sweat as an ominous whirring sound wailed in her ears. Her eyes were streaming with tears. What was going to happen to her now? And how painful would it be? If only Lilac was here to save her right now!

"No, please no!" Carol whimpered desperately, "Don't torture me, please, don't torture me!"

Her whimpers were then quickly replaced by agonized screams as from directly above, a jolt of electricity punched straight down onto her. Carol howled as electricity coursed through her body. Brevon and Natalya just stood by and watched as their prisoner was brutally electrocuted. Natalya in particular seemed to be relishing in Carol's agony given how much she hated her. She could almost imagine Lilac in Carol's place, screaming in agony as she was electrocuted. To Brevon, it was like seeing a repeat of that glorious and satisfying moment back in the Thermal Base last year. He could hardly wait to see what Lilac would think to the sight of Carol when the torture was over...

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, all was not well in Lilac's treehouse. Upon returning home, the dragon girl had flopped herself on the sofa to get some rest from the fight with Natalya earlier. As reluctant as she had been to rest, she knew that she was in no position to carry on fighting. She was aching from the beating Natalya had given her and if she was to have a chance of saving Carol, she had to be in perfect condition. Miguel and Lela had prepared some food for the heroes to eat in case either of them needed any but very few of them were in the mood to eat. Milla had practically wolfed her dinner down and her parents had eaten some food but not a whole lot. Terra had only eaten some food just to see what Avalician food was like. Torque and Lilac both didn't eat anything but Lela had insisted that they eat something since they need to keep their strength up. Lilac had forced down a couple of morsels but nothing more. So had Torque.<p>

Now the food had been eaten or disposed of, the Avalicians and Chasers had taken a long, tense moment to relax and regain their strength. Terra was pleased to feel that her headache was going and that she'd be back in the fight in no time. Milla hadn't even been hurt due to her shields and her parents had only suffered some minor bruises. Torque hadn't been hurt that much since he had been spending most of the fight flying and keeping out of harm's way. It was Lilac who needed to rest more than anybody, her body covered in bruises that were already getting fainter and her chest still stinging from the slash marks Natalya had inflicted upon her. She was beginning to feel a little better though and as the clock ticked towards another hour, the dragon decided she was well enough to rescue Carol. She sat up on the sofa and then stood up from it. Her face was as dark as a thundercloud, her eyes full of determination and her body full of rage.

"OK, nap time's over, I'm going to save my best friend!" Lilac declared.

To her surprise, this seemed to surprise everybody in the room more than get them ready for action. The dragon raised an eyebrow suspiciously at her friends.

"What?" she asked, her voice sounding a little angry.

"Lilac, are you sure you're ready to rescue Carol?" asked Lela cautiously, "You still seem a little banged up love, I still think you need to rest for a few more minutes."

"There's no damn time to rest!" snapped Lilac, "We're just sitting on our asses doing nothing while Carol's suffering at the hands of the Red Scarves! We have to find her and get her out of there before they use the Dark Stone on her!"

"What makes you think they're gonna do that?" asked Milla curiously.

"Why else would they kidnap Carol?" the dragon snorted, "They're obviously gonna do some kind of test on her! Natalya wants to tame the Dark Stone's power remember? What better way to do it than use it on Carol and study how they can keep it under control!"

"I'm pretty sure Natalya wouldn't take a big risk like that…" said Miguel doubtfully, "What if Carol becomes a dragon and then destroys Avalice?"

"All the more reason for us to find her!" screeched Lilac frantically.

"What about that robot you found that created the giant dragon you used to fight off Brevon's forces?" asked Torque curiously, "Maybe we could use that to fight off Carol if she became a dragon."

"Good point, we still have that robot waiting in the Royal Palace to be used again." Lilac murmured, "But I'd rather not be forced to fight Carol. I want her saved before she has the chance to become a Dark Stone Dragon. And that is why I have to find her! The Red Scarves have a doomsday gem and if they misuse it, the end of the world will come for me and my people! I have to stop this apocalypse before it can begin!"

"Ahem, pardon my asking, but how do you intend to even FIND the Red Scarves Lilac?" asked Terra quizzically, "You know where they live right?"

"No…they blew up their old hideout after it was compromised and ran off to a new hideout." Lilac mumbled just loud enough for the Chaser to hear.

"Then you're pretty much trying to carry out an impossible task." Terra noted, "You can't save Carol if you don't know where the Scarves are. Just relax and take it easy hot shot, you won't get anywhere if you stress too much…"

"How can I possibly relax knowing my best friend's probably going to be maimed or killed by Natalya or used as a test subject for the deadliest artefact on Avalice?!" the dragon girl screamed in annoyance, "Don't you tell me to be calm in a time like this Terra! I bet you'd act the same way if Torque was in Carol's position!"

"Now, now Lilac, don't get in over your head." said Torque wearily, "I know you're incredibly worried right now but it's not a good idea to start provoking others. Especially Terra, she's a demon when she's angry." he added, taking note of a slight scowl that spread across the fem-Chaser's face.

"I can't help it Torque!" wailed Lilac, "It's just that everything's been going wrong for me today! Natalya breaks the Scarves out of prison and eludes me, and then she steals the Dark Stone and kidnaps Carol and eludes me again! It's like I can't win against her and it's just getting on my nerves so much! And…and…"

Her anger suddenly shifted to sadness as tears began to trickle out of Lilac's eyes and down her cheeks. Then Lilac turned to face Torque and without warning, she threw her arms around her alien friend and wailed as loudly as she could. The Chaser was surprised at this. He could hardly help but feel sorry for his Avalician friend so he wrapped his arms around her and patted her back softly. He knew what it was like to have an enemy constantly outwitting him and his friends being in danger. He'd experienced it enough times with Brevon. He allowed Lilac to cry into his shoulder as he tried his best to comfort her.

"I'm so scared Torque! Scared for Carol, and scared for my world!" sobbed Lilac, "It's bad enough I've been plagued by nightmares and now we've been experiencing a nightmare unfolding in front of us as each second goes by! I just want this nightmare to end already!"

"You have no idea how much I can relate…" Torque said softly, "Every day I spend fighting Brevon, I just want his nightmare to end. But I promise you Lilac, as long as me and Terra are on this planet, we'll help you end your nightmare. We'll save Carol, get the Dark Stone away from the Scarves and bring an end to Natalya's tyranny."

"Yeah, if me and Torque can send Lord Brevon packing in a fight then this'll be easy!" Terra cried excitedly, "I maybe new to this world but I'm willing to help you save it Lilac!"

"As are we." said Miguel brightly, "You took care of Milla for us while we were stuck with the Red Scarves and you helped us reunite with her."

"My unadventurous nature aside, I'm willing to return the favour darling." Lela added, smiling at Lilac kindly.

"We'll all save Carol and stop Natalya!" declared Milla, "We're all in this together!"

Lilac wiped her eyes dry and smiled at her friends. Could a girl only ask for a finer group of friends?

"Thank you, all of you." she said graciously, "You're the best, all of you are! Carol will be so happy to see us all right now, planning to get her back."

"She will indeed!" piped Milla, "So, how do we find her?"

"I'm sure I'd be useful in that regard." Torque offered, "Maybe I can use one of my tracking devices to try and narrow down her…"

Then suddenly, a strange scuffling noise emitted from just on the other side of the door. Lilac's attention was fixed on it immediately and she saw what it was that had made the noise. It had been a letter being inserted underneath her front door. That was strange. Lilac didn't often get letters, especially this late. Who on Avalice could be giving her mail at this time of day? It was dusking outside! Nervously, the dragon scampered over to the door and scooped up the letter. There was a hole just near the bottom left corner of the letter, suggesting somebody had stuck a blade through it. Lilac stuck her finger in the hole and peeled open the envelope. She took out the letter and gazed at it. It was written in rather fancy handwriting that disguised the true character of the person who had written it. But the text made no attempts at disguising the writer's character at all. The letter said:

**Dear Sash Lilac,**

** If you are receiving this message, consider yourself lucky. I have no idea where you live so if you're reading this letter, I must have just had a lucky guess. If you want your filthy friend Carol Tea back, safe and sound, you must come to the Shang Mu Mountains alone and unarmed. I'm being GERNOUS in even offering to give her back to you. You see, I wanted to use her for something but she's not as useful as I thought. If you dare bring anybody, even that alien freak who was with you, I will kill Carol. If you have any weapons or any planned surprises on you, I will kill Carol. If you dare tell The Magister, King Dail or Mayor Zao about this letter, I. WILL. KILL. CAROL. Please don't squander my generosity my lovely little dragon. I don't like feeling my generosity is being wasted. Carol's life is in your hands. Come alone and she's yours to have back. Don't keep her waiting.**

**Yours wishing you a lot of grief and strife, Natalya.**

Lilac stared at the letter in horror. On the one hand, Natalya was actually making her job a lot easier. On the other hand, did she dare come alone? What if she was setting herself up for a trap? Would Natalya even honour her deal? For all Lilac knew, she'd arrive at the designated area and Carol would be dead waiting for her rather than alive! But what choice did she have? Natalya was offering to give Carol back! She wanted Carol safe! She had to take her up on her offer. Lilac screwed up the letter and threw it on the floor in disgust.

"What's the matter?" asked Milla worriedly.

"Natalya's offering to hand Carol back to me if I come to the Shang Mu mountains alone." the dragon muttered, "I can't bring any of you or she'll kill Carol. I'm not allowed to bring any weapons either. I HAVE to come alone and unarmed or Carol's history."

"Lilac dear, you can't do this!" protested Lela, "What if it's a trap?"

"It's a trap I'm willing to get caught in." said Lilac stoically, "Carol's life matters more at this moment. I'm going and you can't stop me. Please don't try to follow me. I can't risk my best friend's life."

"Now you wait just a minute! You seriously expect us to just sit there and do nothing while you risk getting killed out there?!" shrieked Terra, jumping up from her chair in defiance, "Well to hell with that, I'm not…"

"You will do as you're told lest I be forced to demote you." said Torque coldly, "Sit. DOWN."

Grumbling furiously, Terra slumped back in the chair and folded her arms. The Chaser Commander then turned to face his Avalician friend, his face full of concern.

"We'll wait for you Lilac." said Torque grimly, "Please, come back with Carol alive."

"I hope I will…" Lilac gulped, "Goodbye. I'll be back soon."

With that said, she waved goodbye to her friends and then walked out of the door. She climbed down the treehouse's rope ladder and then sped off, running as fast as she can towards the Shang Mu Mountains. It was a long way to run but Lilac didn't care. She'd make it to Shang Mu and get Carol back even if she had to run around Avalice fifty times and back. As soon as she sped away from her treehouse, Syntax emerged from behind some leaves and watched the dragon leave. Now Lilac was gone, she hovered down from the tree and floated towards a big heavy log that was lying nearby. The log would be too heavy for even five Avalicians to carry. Syntax stuck her tendrils in the log and carried it up off the ground with surprising ease. The robot was very strong, able to rip a hole open in a wall of titanium if necessary. The log weighed nothing to her. Syntax carried the log, which was well over nine feet long and ten inches thick, up to the front door of Lilac's treehouse. She then carefully laid the log down at the foot of the door. The log would be much too heavy to move. The door would be stuck fast, trapping Torque, Terra and the Basset family inside. Just perfect for the bonfire that would claim their pathetic lives. Satisfied with her handiwork, Syntax floated down to the foot of a tree and then fired a laser at it. The laser scorched the wood instantly and a small fire began to start. The fire flickered furiously, greedily consuming the flammable bark of the tree and spreading slowly. The fire was starting off small but it would grow minute by minute. In a few minutes time, it would consume the entire tree. Now all Syntax could do was watch the fire and show Lilac what she was missing out on…

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, Lilac had finally arrived at Shang Mu. It really helped to be super-fast at running like most dragons were. A walk that normally would have taken hours, maybe even days, had been accomplished in minutes by the dragon. Lilac found herself roaming up the Shang Mu Mountains, looking for any sign of Natalya and Carol. She had been instructed to come to the mountains but Natalya hadn't specified WHERE in the mountains she and Carol would be. It was dark now, the night just falling and the moon beginning to rise up in the sky. It shone an ominous yet beautiful glow now, giving Lilac at least some light so she could see. The dragon climbed to the top of one of the mountains and took a look around. Where was Natalya? Then the teen-Avalician cast her eyes over to a strange sight at the bottom of the mountain. It looked like an alien ship sitting in the middle of the stretch of rocky terrain that spread around in the centre of the mountains as if a giant hand had punched down from the sky and flattened the area between them. The dragon rubbed her eyes and looked again. The alien ship was still there, impossibly but definitely. What on Avalice was an alien ship doing here? Lilac began to get a terrible feeling gripping her around the throat. It couldn't be him…could it? Swallowing nervously, Lilac slid down to the bottom of the mountain and jogged over to it. Natalya was there, standing at the bottom of the already lowered docking ramp with the ship's interior light shining behind her. Lilac stood before Natalya, her face full of hatred and her limbs shaking in rage. Never before had she been so angry to see this evil woman again. It seemed Natalya got more and more unpleasant to see the more she saw her. Lilac noticed with satisfaction that her nose seemed a little misshapen. Her head-butt had certainly done some damage to her. She had scored at least one victory against the abhorrent woman today. The black-clad dragon folded her arms and smiled a kind of smile that didn't even try to look friendly.<p>

"Sash Lilac! You answered my letter! How wonderful!" she crowed, "So glad you could join me for this lovely evening my child. Look at the moon," she added, pointing up at the white, glowing ball in the sky above, "Isn't it beautiful?"

"Where's Carol?!" snarled Lilac. She wasn't playing any of Natalya's games. She just wanted her best friend back.

"Where's Carol? Where's Carol? Ugh, you sentimental fools make me sick!" Natalya spat angrily, "Very well, you want Carol? You're going to get her. But first…are you armed?"

"No." the lilac-dragon muttered.

"Did you bring any friends with you?"

"No."

"You're definitely alone and unarmed?"

"Yes."

"Then you may see her!" Natalya exclaimed, sounding oddly excited about what she had just said, "But first, I want you to beg for her Sash Lilac. Beg to me for Carol."

Growling in annoyance, Lilac obliged.

"Please may I see Carol?" she asked, her voice dripping with anger.

"Not good enough." snapped Natalya, "Get on your knees, clasp your hands together and beg me for her!"

Lilac growled irritably. Did Natalya really have it in for her? She maybe did take her defeat at her hands very badly after all. Not only had she kidnapped her best friend but she was now humiliating her and making her beg like a pathetic little child! Natalya deserved to have her nose broken all over again but that could come later. Sighing angrily, Lilac got down onto her knees and clasped her hands together. She looked like a beggar pleading for money. She glared up at Natalya and raised her clasped hands to her face.

"Please may I see Carol?" she asked.

"Say it again!"

"PLEASE may I see Carol?!" Lilac snapped in annoyance.

"Don't you use that tone at me young lady!" snarled Natalya, "One more time!"

"Please may I see Carol?" Lilac asked, sounding less annoyed but nowhere near feeling any less annoyed with her loathsome rival.

"Thank you!" sneered Natalya, "You're such a good little dragon! Come on in then my child, your friend awaits…" she purred, making Lilac feel rather nervous.

The dragon heaved her heavy bones up onto her feet and followed Natalya into the ship. She was still curious about the out-of-place presence of the vessel. Who owned it and why was it here? And why was Carol on-board it? Lilac had a nasty feeling that the answers were all bad…very bad…so bad that she couldn't bear to think about them…

* * *

><p><em>A few minutes ago…<em>

During the time it had taken Lilac to get to Shang Mu, the Chasers and Bassets were still sitting around in the living room and tensely waiting for Lilac to return. She hadn't been gone for very long but already the two aliens and three hounds were worrying about her. True, Lilac was super-fast and could get to Shang Mu in a short amount of time so she wouldn't be very long but they were still concerned for their reptilian friend. Terra in particular seemed like she was about to burst with worry. She had her hands gripped tightly together as if trying to crush them. Torque read her body language and knew instantly his lieutenant was getting restless.

"Ooooh, why couldn't we have gone with her?!" the Chaser moaned, "Lilac's throwing herself into a trap, I just know it! I know a trap like the back of my hand! I've spent countless hours practicing how to recognize one and avoid it!"

"I know, I was the one who taught you those lessons." Torque murmured softly, "And I know you're anxious Terra but you must understand, Lilac can't come accompanied or Carol will die."

"Oh yeah? And what if it turns out Carol's already dead?!" snapped Terra, "Then Lilac's throwing herself into a trap for nothing! We should have gone with her so we could make sure she'd be alright! I'm an expert in getting in and out of places unnoticed remember?"

"Then explain how Brevon ended up chasing after you when you escaped from his ship." Torque retorted, "We can't take any risks Terra. I don't know Natalya like Lilac does but I'm sure she's not a woman who takes any chances."

"That's right sir." said Lela, "She's quite meticulous. She's trained to spot even the slightest difference and anomaly, nothing gets past her sharp eyes. She'd spot us no matter how well hidden we were."

"I remember I once tried to hide a dagger up my sleeve so I could attack her with it." sighed Miguel, "She noticed it thanks to a slight bulge in my sleeve and forced me to drop it."

"Wow, she's good." gasped Milla.

"You have no idea sweetheart…" Miguel said gravely.

"So like it or not Terra, we just couldn't risk coming with Lilac to save Carol." Torque said, his face grave and serious, "So please, don't complain about it."

"Maybe I shouldn't but you can't blame me for being nervous right?" asked Terra indignantly, "I mean Lilac's the girl who made Lord Brevon a laughing stock! She's an inspiration to us all! If she dies now then who's going to inspire more people to rise up against Brevon and eventually take him out? It's because of her that more people are even taking action against him!"

"I know. But even if Natalya's letter is a trap, I'm sure Lilac will make it out alive." the commander said kindly, hugging Terra to ease her jumpy nerves, "She survived everything Brevon threw it her, I'm sure Natalya's trap won't claim her life."

Secretly, the Chaser was equally as worried for Lilac as his lieutenant was. He had a deep fondness for the dragon which he had nearly displayed when they had almost kissed earlier, he couldn't bear the thought of losing his dear friend. But he was taking Terra's earlier advice to heart and trying to remain optimistic about the situation. Terra did have a good point in how he couldn't spend his life worrying about people all the time. But he soon found himself with something to worry about for Milla's nose began twitching curiously. The hound sniffed the air inquisitively as a strange scent tickled her nostrils. Terra saw this and raised a brow.

"Uh, why is she sniffing?" she asked.

"You smell something?" asked Torque curiously.

"I...I smell..." Milla paused as she sniffed some more, "I smell...smoke."

"Smoke?" asked Lela, "Are you sure darling?"

"Yes mommy. I smell smoke." said Milla, "It's coming from outside."

That made everybody feel nervous. If it had been coming from inside then that meant it could be dealt with quite easily. But Milla had said the smoke was coming from outside. That couldn't be good news. Torque quickly ran over to the window and glanced through it to see where the smoke was coming from. To his horror, a huge tongue of flames licked up at the porch just outside the front door. The fire Syntax had started had been getting worse and worse as the minutes had ticked by and now it had reached the house itself! The rope ladder had been incinerated by the flames and the branches holding the sturdy wooden house began to catch fire. The flames wound soon begin burning down the house itself! Torque's blood ran cold as he watched the fiery inferno below. How had the tree caught fire? It didn't matter, they had to leave now before they were burnt alive. The Chaser turned around and shrieked to his comrades.

"FIRE! We've gotta evacuate now!"

"Fire?!" squealed Milla in horror, "Oh no! Lilac's house is on fire!"

"And we're gonna be barbecued if we don't skedaddle now!" shrieked Terra, "Everybody bail out through the front door! Me and Torque will fly out down to the bottom away from the flames!"

Nobody wasted any time at all. Milla was the first to react, scampering on all fours towards the door. Everybody else chased after her. But as the puppy pushed her hands against the door, she found that to her horror it wouldn't open! Milla pushed with all her might but the door refused to budge. Milla then began thumping wildly on the door, trying to break it down. It still wouldn't budge. The log Syntax had placed in front of it was doing its job well.

"It's jammed!" wailed Milla frantically, "It won't open!"

"The door's stuck?!" squealed Lela, "Oh no! How on Avalice will we get out now?!"

"Why's the door stuck?!" cried Miguel worriedly, "Surely Lilac wouldn't have trapped us in here just to stop us from following her!"

"I don't think that's the case Mr. Basset…" Torque murmured, "Doesn't matter, we can't stay here or we'll be incinerated!"

"I could shoot it down, but that might make the fire worse." murmured Terra, "My shots would easily ignite the wood some more."

"As would mine." said Torque gravely, "And the flames might be too much for us to head out through the front door anyway. Head for the second floor! Me and Terra will fly you all out of the window up there!" he ordered.

Everybody did as they were told, quickly running to the stairs and preparing to run up to the upper floor. The house was beginning to get hotter and hotter by the second. Milla and Lela were both beginning to worry about scalding their bare feet as the floor began to heat up. Their paw pads would protect them for only so long before the floor got too hot. The upper floor would be cooler for their feet to avoid being burnt. Torque led the group upstairs as he charged towards the bedrooms. The smell of smoke was plaguing his nostrils. He began to feel sick. Smoke is an unpleasant smell and somehow when it's on the heels of a fire, it smells even worse. Torque made it up stairs but just as he and the heroes ran towards the outdoor balcony, a terrible sound was heard from above their heads. It sounded like wood breaking but it was coming from outside just above the roof. The alien commander had a nasty feeling he knew what was about to happen next. He leapt back as a flaming tree branch that reached above the treehouse crashed down onto the roof of the house. It smashed through the roof, bringing a huge flame inside the building and setting the ceiling alight. The floor that led to the porch began to burn, a wall of flame sealing off the Chasers and Hounds' only escape route. Everybody cried out in despair.

"NO!" cried Torque.

"Back downstairs! We could break through a window in one of the room around the back!" Miguel suggested.

But he soon found out that plan was not an option. The flames from the tree had finally made their way inside the house, spreading across the floor of the bottom storey and igniting the furniture. A huge roar emitted from the flames as they consumed whatever lay in their paths. The flames were beginning to reach the stairs, sealing off any chance of returning to the bottom storey. The heat was getting more and more intense. The trapped Avalicians and aliens were sweating from the heat and also from the fear that they were going to die. They couldn't escape, the fire had them surrounded. Milla clutched her parents as if she knew she'd never see them again.

"We're trapped!" she wailed, "There's no way out!"

"We can't go up, we can't go down!" whimpered Lela, her eyes streaming with tears, "Oh Milla, we're finished! We're going to die I'm afraid!"

"I don't wanna die!" sobbed Milla, her eyes streaming with tears too, "Please tell me we'll be alright mommy!"

"Your mother's right Milla, we're trapped and we can't escape from this inferno." said Miguel sadly, embracing his wife and child warmly as if wanting to make the most of their last moments together, "We're doomed, all of us…"

"I wish Lilac was here! She would save us!" howled Milla, burying her face into Lela's chest and crying into her fur.

Miguel and Lela weren't entirely sure if Lilac could possibly save them from this terror, even if she was here. They hugged Milla tightly, determined to give her at least some comfort in their final minutes. The puppy hugged them back as if hoping her parents could somehow protect them. Torque also seemed to have given up hope. Instead of coming up with another plan, he was standing still and waiting to be scorched alive. It seemed he had excepted his fate. But Terra hadn't. She refused to give up. Trying to ignore the crackling of burning wood and the roaring of flames, she looked around wildly for a possible way out. That was when she saw the bedrooms nearby. There was no fire in the bedrooms yet and there was a window. The female Chaser ran into the bedrooms and over to the window. She presumed the bedroom belonged to Lilac and felt sorry that she would never sleep in it again. She peered out of the window and gasped with relief. The flames hadn't blocked the window, they could escape through it! She cupped her hands over her mouth and yelled to the others.

"Everybody! In here! There's a window we can get out of!"

The response was automatic. Torque and the hounds charged straight into the bedroom as if stepping out of hell itself and through a doorway to heaven. Terra opened the window quickly and waited for the hounds to get to it. She pointed at Milla.

"You first kiddo!" she yelled, "Children are most important! Me and Torque will get your parents out!"#

The little dog obeyed and she climbed up onto the windowsill. She jumped through the window and began flapping her ears and arms frantically, taking flight and flying away from the blazing treehouse. She could feel the heat of the flames underneath her and was thankful she was not going to be burnt alive now. She dared a risky glance of her shoulder and watched with relief as Terra came flying out of the house with Lela in her arms and Torque flew out after her with Miguel in his arms. Everybody was safe at last. The heroes headed down to the ground below, leaving the doomed treehouse to be consumed by the fire. A huge branch that had been supporting the treehouse gave way and snapped, crashing down onto the cold, grassy terrain below. Flames still lingered on the branch but they wouldn't stay for long. The treehouse was beginning to blacken from the blazing fire, the roof collapsing in on itself with an awesome yet terrifying creaking and crashing sound. The flames had reached the top branches, meaning no inch of the treehouse would be spared. Everybody watched with despair as Lilac's wonderful home was being burnt to cinders. Lilac would be devastated to see that this had happened to her only place of sanctuary. Milla began to cry again, covering her eyes and sobbing into her hands.

"Lilac's h-h-house…it-it's d-destroyed!" she whimpered, "I l-l-loved l-living th-there w-with L-Lilac and C-Carol! W-w-where w-w-will L-L-Lilac and m-me and C-C-Carol live now?!"

"Sssh, sssh, it's alright my baby, we'll find a new place to live." Lela insisted, embracing her weeping child affectionately.

"Be glad we're alive sweetheart. Losing a home is more important than losing your life." said Miguel softly.

"It's a good thing Lilac did leave or she'd be baring witness to this…" murmured Torque, "We have to find her and let her know what's happened."

"I hope she's alive and with Carol safe and sound." Terra murmured grimly, "Let's go team. We can't stay here."

Everybody nodded and got up onto their feet. Torque led the way to Shang Mu with Terra and the Bassets following him closely behind. What would Lilac say when she found out what had happened to her treehouse? She'd be very heartbroken to say the least. Torque knew that he'd be happy to give Lilac any comfort she desired if she needed any. As the heroes left, they didn't realize that they weren't alone. Syntax had been watching the fire destroy Lilac's treehouse and now had enough recorded footage to show Lilac back in Brevon's ship. She was likely there by now so Syntax would be there to show her. She hadn't noticed that the Chasers and Hounds had escaped. With nothing more to see, Syntax vanished into thin air, leaving only a smouldering, blazing tree behind…

* * *

><p><em>Now…<em>

"Carol Tea! There's somebody here to see you!" Natalya cooed as she opened up the door and let Lilac into the torture chamber.

The dragon trudged into the room behind Natalya, still itching to thump her in her broken nose just for satisfaction purposes. The walk through the alien ship hadn't been too pleasant for the whole atmosphere had been giving Lilac bad vibes. Why did the ship look so familiar? It reminded her vaguely of the Dreadnought that she and her friends had broken into to stop Lord Brevon and get back the Kingdom Stone. Was this a Lord Brevon ship? It couldn't be. He'd been trying his hardest just to leave the planet, why would he come back? Revenge perhaps but surely Brevon would have come in another Dreadnought ship rather than this somewhat inferior model? All Lilac knew was that she wanted to get out of the ship with Carol in her arms as fast as possible.

Natalya stood by the doorway, smiling wickedly as she awaited her hated enemy's reaction. Lilac walked past Natalya and looked ahead of her. To her horror, she saw Carol but as she had feared, she wasn't in a good state at all. She was chained to a metal bed and looking worse for wear. Her fur had been scorched and blackened by the electrical shocks, her clothes had been frayed in certain areas and she looked very weak. Her eyes were closed as if keeping them open was too much hard work for her. Lilac put her hands to her face in horror. This was exactly what had happened to her last year! She'd been chained to a metal slab and electrocuted near to death! And now Carol had heartlessly been subjected to the same cruelty and torture she had!

"CAROL!" Lilac screamed in anguish.

The mere shrieking of her best friend's name was enough to get Carol to stir. She opened her eyes, barely, and she groaned a sickly groan of pain. Her body felt like it had been damaged beyond repair. She could hardly feel anything except for the burns on her body. Lilac ran over to Carol and placed her hands on the cat's face. Her eyes were streaming with tears. How could Natalya be so beastly and do this to Carol?! And why do it? What was the point? Carol stared straight into her best friend's tear soaked eyes. Just seeing Lilac again made her feel a little better. She could still barely open her eyes and she only just managed to summon enough strength to even speak to the dragon.

"Lilac…?" she whispered hoarsely, "Is…is that…you?"

"It's me, it's me Carol!" wailed Lilac, "Oh Carol, I'm so sorry this has been allowed to happen to you!"

"Don't…sweat it…it's…not your…fault I got…kidnapped…" the wildcat croaked pathetically.

"Well it doesn't matter who's fault it is, I'm getting you outta here!" the dragon declared, immediately reaching up to tug on Carol's right wrist shackle.

"Oh I think my new friend might like a word with you first Sash Lilac…" Natalya purred wickedly.

Before Lilac could even ask what Natalya meant, a huge shape emerged from behind the bed and glowered down at the dragon with huge, red eyes. Lilac looked up from Carol and let out a scream of terror at what her eyes were now set upon. It was just as she had feared. Standing before her, a look of death in his blood-red eyes was Lord Brevon himself! The insidious warlord was here, in the flesh and back on Avalice! Lilac was so horrified that she could barely speak. Carol's eyes seemed to widen as she saw Lilac's horrified face. She knew that she was going to be shocked at the sight of Brevon. The alien himself just folded his arms and grinned sadistically at his draconian nemesis. It felt good to see her terrified before him right now.

"No…no…no please no! Not you! Anyone but you!" wailed Lilac.

**"I'm glad you recognized me you insignificant little wretch." **sneered Brevon, **"I myself have not forgotten about you little one."**

"But…but…why?!" the dragon exclaimed, "Why come back here?! You hate Avalice! All you wanted to do is leave! You shouldn't be interested in me or my people!"

**"Did you forget what happened in our last encounter?" **Brevon taunted, enjoying himself immensely, **"You defeated me in combat, forced me to flee in an escape pod and then destroyed my ship. You made me a joke, an embarrassment and a subject of mockery amongst those who once feared me. You ruined my reputation…"**

As he spoke, he advanced on Lilac, causing her to start backing away. The dragon stared nervously at Brevon as he walked towards her. Was he going to kill her? It wouldn't surprise her if he did. It seemed she had done more than just send Brevon packing. She had wounded his pride and he likely thought she deserved to die for it. Lilac backed away from Brevon until her back ended up touching against solid metal. She was trapped, sandwiched between Brevon and the wall with nowhere to run or hide. Lilac pressed herself against the wall, her heart pounding and her head raining with sweat. Brevon still kept his steely gaze fixed on his loathsome enemy. Carol watched helplessly as Brevon reached into his cloak. If only she could break free and help Lilac!

**"..more people have risen up against me, all because of you." **the galactic conqueror snarled, **"You've humiliated me…"**

He then took his hand back out from his cape, which now held his huge, sharp dagger. Once again, it was coated in green ooze. Lilac gulped, her eyes fixed on the blade.

**"…and for that, I'm afraid I cannot allow you to live." **Brevon purred sinisterly.

He held the blade against Lilac's throat. The dragon turned her head to one side and closer her eyes tightly, whimpering as she felt the sharp edge against her skin. Brevon was going to chop her head off. It was his favourite way of dispatching somebody. Lilac could just imagine the blade sweeping through the air and cleaving through her neck. What a horrible way to die. At least she wouldn't feel any pain.

**"I've had many wicked fantasies on how to kill you." **Brevon snarled, **"One of them involves scraping the puny flesh off of your puny little bones piece by piece until you die. I could just do that right now…"**

But as he finished his sentence, he took his dagger away from Lilac's neck and put it back into his cape. The dragon opened her eyes, amazed that she was still alive. She didn't dare move from her position as Brevon folded his arms again.

**"But that is not what me and this vengeful woman planned." **he announced, motioning to Natalya, **"And also, I'd rather give you a fate worse than death. And my comrade's plan is just the kind of fate I want you subjected to."**

"Is that so?" asked Lilac, "Well then, I have a question for Natalya."

She glanced over at her former leader, who stood by and waited for her question.

"Why the hell are you working with this monster?!" Lilac demanded angrily.

"I want you dead, he wants you dead. Simple as that." sneered Natalya.

"But Natalya, this is the man who tried to take our Kingdom Stone and plunge us into an energy crisis that would spell doom on us all!" the Avalician heroine exclaimed, "He even tortured me just like how Carol's been tortured and he chopped off my hair! Is this kind of behaviour towards a dragon something you're OK with?!"

"I'm just sad I wasn't there to witness it when it happened." the villainess sniffed.

**"Never mind now, we have more pressing matters to deal with." **Brevon cut in, **"Tell me little girl. How do you feel seeing me again after a year gone by? Are you scared? Disgusted? Angry? Maybe you're seething with hatred. Tell me…how do you feel?"**

"I'm terrified and enraged!" Lilac spat angrily "You're literally the only person who scares me more than Natalya! And I'm enraged that you've dared to come here, torture my best friend and team up with my other arch-enemy just to get revenge on me! Mark my words Brevon, I won't let you get away this time! I am so gonna kick your ass for this!"

**"Now, now, let us not be too hostile my angry little nemesis." **crooned Brevon, **"After all, it isn't healthy to get too angry. I'm sure you know that."**

"Then in that case, would you care to be my stress relief?" snarled Lilac.

**"I've no time for that sort of nonsense right now so I'm going to have to decline your offer." **the armoured alien said casually, **"Why don't you just return home and calm down for a moment? Only, you don't have a home to return to…"**

"What do you mean?" the dragon asked nervously, her tough demeanour softening.

Brevon didn't answer. Instead, he stood by and waited for his servant bot to show up. In a bright green flash, Syntax suddenly appeared from nowhere directly beside Brevon. Lilac remembered her all too well. She had fought Syntax in Brevon's Thermal Base and on the Dreadnought. Seemed she had been rebuilt after their fight on the Dreadnought. Syntax backed away from Brevon so she had some space between herself and him and then she showed off a holographic picture.

"Would you like to see your home?" Syntax asked bluntly, gazing at Lilac with her singular green optic.

Lilac gazed in horror at the sight of what was on the hologram. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. On the holographic image, was a video feed of her treehouse on fire! Lilac watched on the video as the fire got bigger and bigger until it consumed the entire treehouse. She knew that when she returned home, there would be nothing but burnt wood and ashes where it had once stood. The dragon let out a howl of dismay at what she was seeing. Once again, tears trickled down her cheeks.

"MY HOUSE!" she screeched, "YOU BURNT DOWN MY HOUSE?!"

"Yes I did." said Syntax, her voice bleak and emotionless, "And that's not all. There were five lifeforms in the establishment. I do not suppose that they were friends of yours?"

"Torque…Terra...Miguel, Lela…MILLA!" Lilac shrieked, "They were left behind…they…they're…they're dead! YOU KILLED THEM! HOW COULD YOU DESTROY MY HOUSE AND KILL MY FRIENDS?!"

Carol's ears drooped down by her head in dismay. Her eyes welled up as she took in what Lilac had just found out. The treehouse had been destroyed and Torque, Terra, Milla and her parents were all dead. What a terrible day this had turned out to be and it was about to get worse. Brevon allowed himself a moment to be pleased that his other hated nemesis and the one who had spied on him and ruined his invasion plan were now dead. He knew Torque was on Avalice due to Natalya describing him earlier. It served him right for sticking his nose in where it didn't belong.

**"Just like I said, we wanted to give you a fate worse than death." **sneered Brevon, focusing back onto Lilac, **"Now we've taken everything away from you. Your home is in cinders, five of your friends are dead and your best friend is grievously harmed."**

"Shall we put her out of her misery?" asked Natalya, preparing to activate the torture jolt on Carol again.

**"I'm sure your feline friend won't mind." **Brevon sneered.

Lilac took in everything that had happened today, sitting on her knees and crying angry tears. Natalya had outwitted her constantly throughout the day and now she had teamed up with Lord Brevon to make her life miserable. They had the Dark Stone, they had tortured Carol out of spite against her, they had destroyed her house and killed her second best friend as well as her parents, Torque and Terra. Milla was only a child! **A child!** And they had just heartlessly murdered her with one simple blaze! And Torque, she had taken a fancy to him! She even wondered if she was in love with him! They had almost kissed! And now she was never going to see him again! And now they were going to kill Carol just to "put her out of her misery"?! The dragon couldn't take it anymore. Being plagued by nightmares already, this was just too much for her to bear. In a single leap, she bounded back onto her feet and screamed a single, enraged roar of anguish. Natalya recoiled whereas Brevon watched her, fascinated with what he was seeing. Lilac had never been so angry before. This was getting interesting. The dragon had finally snapped. Her eyes were full of rage and her face was twisted in an ugly scowl of hatred and contempt. She looked like she was about to murder somebody.

"YOU MONSTERS! YOU'VE WRECKED MY LIFE AND TAKEN AWAY MANY THINGS THAT WERE PRECIOUS TO ME! AND NOW YOU'RE GOING TO MURDER MY BEST FRIEND?! Lilac bellowed at the top of her lungs, "DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THE LAST TIME YOU TICKED ME OFF?! WELL THIS TIME, YOU'RE DEAD! BOTH OF YOU! **YOU. ARE. DEAAAAAAAAAD!**"

Then suddenly, just before she could do anything, a door opened up just inches away from Lilac and in slithered Serpentine. He had been waiting outside with the Dark Stone in his metal hands and had been told to come in once Lilac had snapped. Now was the time to make his move. He had the Dark Stone because having robotic hands, it had no effect on him. The Dark Stone only affected organic beings. Serpentine's metal hands weren't organic so the stone didn't harm him. Serpentine raised his hand, smiling wickedly at his rival. How he had longed to pay Lilac back for making a fool out of him last year!

"Hey you sparkly twit! You don't look so good! Maybe THIS'll make you feel better!" he cackled.

He then threw the Dark Stone at Lilac. He was going to enjoy watching her suffer, as were Brevon and Natalya. The dragon flinched as the Dark Stone hit her and upon touching her, it reacted instantly. The stone glowed a fluorescent purple as it came into contact with her back and it instantly began to feed on the enraged, heartbroken dragon's negative emotions. It was like a swarm of piranhas digging into a kill. Lilac bellowed in agony as the Dark Stone began to take over her body. She gripped her head and winced tensely as a purple aurora surrounded her body. She opened her eyes, which were now glowing red in colour and she let out a thunderous roar that didn't sound natural coming out of her. Carol watched, her heart aching as she watched her friend writhe in agony. Oh why did this have to happen?! Why did Lilac have to suffer so much?! Brevon and Natalya both cackled manically as they watched the doomsday gem's magic at work. Lilac began roaring again, her skin turning a dark mauve colour and then becoming darker and dark until she became completely black. The stone had total control over her now. Clinging onto her back, it was like the rider on the back of a horse, in total command and free to steer her in any direction it wanted. Lilac couldn't stop it as the Dark Stone corrupted every inch of her body. She was helpless against its power, her negative emotions too great for her to overcome the stone's curse. And then…Lilac began to transform…transform into the very creature that would doom all of Avalice…

* * *

><p><strong><em>Oh...my...GOD! WHAT THE HELL'S GONNA HAPPEN NEXT?! 0_0 <em>**

**_Tune in next time and see if Lilac can be saved..._**


	9. Chapter 8: Dragon of Destruction

_Chapter 8: Dragon of Destruction_

Carol was witnessing quite possibly the worst scene she would ever bear witness to in all her life. The charred and blackened wildcat had already been put through hell by receiving a brutal round of electric torture from Lord Brevon and Natalya but now she had single-handedly watched her best friend be broken down one piece at a time. Lilac had snapped after seeing her two worst enemies teaming up together, her best friend horribly tortured and her own house burnt to ashes, supposedly taking Torque, Milla, Miguel, Lela and Terra to their graves along the way. The terrifying part was this had all been Brevon and Natalya's plan from the start. Ever since the team up, they had played Lilac for a sap, manipulating the day's events into their favour and bringing Lilac further and further into their trap. And now they'd broken the poor dragon, who was already teeming with stress before this had even happened, and now she was succumbing to the terrifying effects of the Dark Stone.

Brevon and Natalya were laughing maniacally as they watched their loathsome nemesis transform from a good-hearted heroine to a monstrous, destruction-craving dragon right before their eyes. Carol just watched, wishing she could help save her friend from this nightmare. Lilac let out another thunderous roar as her red eyes glowed malevolently. They were like red pools of anger and hate and anybody who looked into them would find themselves at her wrath. Her lilac-scales had turned black with her belly section being dark grey to stand out. And as the corrupted dragon began twisting in agony, her size began to increase. The villains stopped laughing and watched as their enemy began to grow, her clothes ripping to pieces as her size increased inch by inch. Her face began to grow a little longer so she now had a proper dragon snout full of razor sharp teeth. Her fingers and toes became claws and her tail began to grow longer. Huge wings began to grow from out of the dragon's back. Her trademark hair and tendrils began to increase in length too, giving Lilac a rather mane-like style of hair with two long tendrils that added to her look. Her size continued ever growing, her height almost touching the ceiling above. Natalya began to grow nervous.

"Um…Brevon? Do you think she's going to break through the ship and destroy it?" the leather-coated woman asked nervously.

**"If she carries on growing like that, my ship could be in pieces. And I'll be needing it for the destruction of Avalice." **Brevon murmured, his eyes glued to the scene before him, **"Syntax, teleport the ship away but leave the dragon and her feline companion behind!" **he barked, turning to face his robotical sidekick who just stood beside him, watching Lilac's transformation with fascination that wasn't apparent on her faceless construction.

"As you wish sir." Syntax replied.

In a matter of seconds, Syntax tapped into the battleship's control systems and activated a limited range teleportation beam that swept over the entire vessel and whisked it away into thin air. This feature had recently been installed by Brevon himself in order to stop people from sabotaging his ships. Had he known Terra was on-board the Dreadnought earlier, he would have teleported it away and left her behind so she couldn't sabotage it. Now the single battleship that had survived the attack from Torque's fleet had teleported away to save itself a lot of damage from Lilac's transformation. The range was limited so it wouldn't teleport very far but plenty far enough away to avoid Lilac's destructive wrath. The clever feature was that Syntax could programme the teleporter beam to either bring everybody on-board or leave certain people behind. It had been programmed to leave Lilac and Carol behind so that was exactly what it had done. The entire ship vanished from all around the two Avalicians, the hi-tech torture chamber now replaced with the outside world as if they had stepped out of one world into another. The scenery of ship's interior had now been replaced by rocky terrain and pitch black night time sky. The wildcat had been astonished at this feat. She knew Brevon's technology was insanely advanced but she had no idea it was THIS advanced. The good thing that had come out of the ship teleporting away and leaving her was that she was now free from her restraints. But on the other hand, Carol wasn't sure if she'd rather have stayed on the ship than with her corrupted best friend.

Straining, Carol forced herself onto her knees and watched with fright as her draconian companion continued to transform. She was close to completion now, her body pretty much done and just growing the last few feet in size that it needed to. Carol wasn't sure what hurt more. Her electric torture session or the emotional pain of watching her best friend become a monster. As far as she was concerned, both pains were taking their toll on her. She could imagine what poor Lilac was feeling right now. Pain, agony, despair...and rage. All of them amplified greatly by the Dark Stone and her body being transformed into a monster of mass power and with an unsatisfying crave for destruction. The Avalician dragon's transformation was finally completed and now she stood at a terrifying fifteen feet tall, towering over Carol and casting her huge shadow over the wildcat. Carol's eyes widened in fear as she observed what had become of her best friend. Lilac was huge and monstrous looking, five sharp claws on each hand and three sharp claws on each foot with a long, scaly, whippy tail, wings the size of galleon sails and a mouth full of sharp teeth. The red eyes spelled death for anybody who was unfortunate to set their gaze upon her and she roared a thunderous roar that made the earth tremble as if the ground itself was afraid of her. The Dark Stone remained attached to her back, glowing malevolently as its power swarmed from the dragon's bloodstream. Carol put a hand to her face and leaned back in terror. She had never been so scared in all her life. She had been scared when taking on Lord Brevon, she had been scared when seeing what he had done to Lilac...but those were nothing compared to what she was baring witness to now. She could hardly feel her rapid heartbeat for she was so afraid she couldn't even register the individual beats. All she could do was stare at Lilac, glued to the spot in fear and at her mercy.

"Oh Lilac...what have they done to you?" she wailed, her eyes streaming with tears, "My poor best friend..."

Lilac did not seem to notice that Carol was on the ground before her. She was just bellowing up at the sky as if hoping it could somehow fix what had happened to her. All that happened was that dark thunderclouds as black as the night itself began to form around and huge streaks of lightening crackled in the sky, setting the dark, rocky terrain aglow with a luminous white light. Thunder followed shortly after, a loud booming clap that was as ominous as Lilac's monstrous roars. The huge, beastly dragon stopped roaring at the sky and it scanned the scenery around with her fearsome red eyes. Carol curled up into a ball of fear, expecting to be eaten by Lilac any moment now. She was shaking like a leaf. This was the end for her, killed by her own best friend. But Lilac still didn't notice Carol. She had brilliant night vision, a gift from the Dark Stone itself but it wasn't looking for the wildcat. She wasn't even aware that Carol was here with her now. She was looking for something to destroy. The dragons before her that had used the evil gem in ancient Avalician history would have behaved exactly the same way, looking for things to destroy and then going the full mile. Lilac seemed to have memories left of when she was Avalician for she remembered where she was. The Shang Mu Mountains. If she was in the mountains...then the city itself was nearby. And that meant a horde of destructive fun for the behemoth. Lilac flapped her enormous wings, sending gusts of wind towards Carol and she took to the skies. Lilac swooped away and headed over the mountains towards Shang Mu. Carol uncurled from her cowering position and she watched as her draconian friend disappeared over the mountains. Her blood ran colder than the night itself. She knew what was happening.

"Oh no...she's gonna destroy Shang Mu! And then...the world afterwards!" Carol cried out in horror, "I've...I've gotta stop her! Injuries or no injuries...I've gotta stop her!"

The tomboy feline forced herself feebly onto her feet. The pains of her electric torture had taken a heavy toll on her but Carol didn't care anymore. She could have a broken leg and she still wouldn't give up. Carol grunted as she fought the pain in her body. She had to stand! She had to get into the battle! She couldn't sit there and do nothing! Now back on her feet, Carol forced herself to start sprinting. Ever step she took sent spasms of pain through her body but once again, she ignored it. Only thing mattered to her now, and it was her best friend's safety. She had to stop Lilac before the Dark Stone made her destroy the very world she swore to protect. She had saved the world once and Carol was not about to let Lilac undermine her own hard work by destroying it. Sprinting on all fours for extra speed, Carol charged over the mountains and headed towards Shang Mu.

"I hope I'm not too late..." the tortured but very much still active wildcat said to herself...

* * *

><p>Mayor Zao of Shang Mu was currently experiencing one of his favourite times of day. A relaxing evening in his royal bedroom before he went to sleep for the night. His idea of a relaxing evening was sitting in a chair outside on his balcony and having a bedtime supper of Shang Mu Noodle soup with a freshly baked roll of sourdough bread. He had this every evening before bed for it always put him in a good frame of mind before it was time to go to sleep. The Mayor dipped a chunk of his bread into his warm bowl of soup and tucked into it eagerly. What bliss this was. The perfect way to end a good day. As he had his supper, he observed his grandiose city with satisfaction. Shang Mu was a city that was told apart from the others by having a trademark red colour scheme to stand out from Shang Tu's trademark blue and Shuigang's trademark green. Shang Mu was a large city with huge shopping malls, grand houses to live in and the huge palace that Mayor Zao occupied. The palace itself was one of those buildings were you had the curious feeling that the person who owned it had too much living space for his or her own good. The short-heighted red panda didn't have many people living in the palace with him aside from lots of guards and any servants who waited on him hand and foot. The Mayor didn't mind his rather over-sized living quarters. He was just proud to be living in a palace and ruling over a city. He would be sad when the time came for re-election and his days as mayor would be over, unless everybody voted for him again. But that wasn't going to happen for a while yet so he wasn't worried. He was purely content with himself as he enjoyed the view outside his balcony window. Zao dipped some more bread in his soup and plunged it between his lips.<p>

"A nice warming supper and a beautiful view to admire before bed. What could be a better way to spend the evening?" he asked himself, "I bet tomorrow's going to be a good day just like today has been. Rather disturbing I'll admit to hear that the Red Scarves have escaped and Shang Tu's in serious need of repair but those wretched thieves will not get anywhere near me! They'll not ruin anything for me tomorrow or any other day!"

He was dead certain that the Red Scarves were nothing to worry about at this point in time. He had guards and if they failed to stop the scarves, then why worry when Lilac and her friends could stop them? He had heard all about how Lilac had stopped Lord Brevon last year and how she had also stopped Natalya last Christmas. She and her gang had tried to kill him but since The Christmas Raid had been foiled, Natalya hadn't repeated herself. He had no reason to worry about her return, especially since Lilac would just beat her into a pulp again.

"It's amazing how much of a heroine that Lilac girl is..." the mayor mused, "Saving the world, saving me from the Red Scarves, yeah she's quite the heroine. And only a kid no less! Maybe I could hire her to be my official bodyguard. I'd be well protected with her looking after me!"

**5+ PROTECTED**

"Maybe tomorrow I'll pay her a little visit and see if she's interested in such a job." Zao suggested, "I hope she says yes..."

He was just about to eat some more of his soup soaked bread before something in the sky caught his eye. It was a faint twinkle in the starless sky, reflecting off of the moonlight. What was it? A star? Zao put down his supper and he gazed out into the night sky. It was hard to see anything but he swore he saw a twinkle somewhere in the black void above. Was it a shooting star? If so then Zao had the perfect thing to wish for. But something told him that it wasn't a shooting star. It was something else, he had a feeling of it. He kept his beady eyes on the little "star" and watched as it came swooping down towards Shang Mu. Then Zao saw that his suspicions were correct. It wasn't a star, but a huge dragon! The twinkle he had seen had been the moonlight reflecting off of a purple gem that protruded from its back. What kind of dragon was it? The mayor could make out the generic shape of the dragon, noticing the wings, long tail and huge jaws that made the stereotypical image of a dragon. It had black scales. Zao wondered if the presence of the huge beast was a good thing or a bad thing. Given how dragons had inspired the three kingdoms of Avalice, the Avalicians had a great amount of respect for any dragon that showed its face.

But then the red panda in the red mayor outfit watched as the dragon stomped down on the ground and let out a thunderous roar. It was so loud that despite being several yards away, Zao could still hear it quite clearly. Then the dragon opened up its huge jaws and breathed out a huge tongue of purple flames from deep within its body. Anything in the way of the dragon's attack was instantly incinerated by the flames. Any Avalicians still awake watched as the dragon began to incinerate innocent people and buildings and they all began running away in panic. Any Avalicians that had been asleep had been woken up by the behemoth's roar and were now fleeing out of their beds and outside into the streets in their pyjamas. They didn't have time to get dressed. The dragon watched with glee as its attack destroyed some buildings and sent the city populace running in fear. Zao thought he was going to have a heart attack upon witnessing what was going on.

"MY CITY!" he shrieked "IT'S UNDER ATTACK FROM A HUGE BLACK DRAGON! OH CALAMITY! MY GLROIOUS CITY'S GOING TO BE IN RUINS!"

**5+ PANICKED AS ALL HELL**

"I CAN'T LET THAT THING DESTROY MY CITY!" Zao declared angrily, "I'll get the army immediately and destroy that monster!"

With that said, his little legs carried him quickly away from the balcony and out of the room as fast as he could run. He was not allowing this beast to tear his city apart. He would destroy it before it could destroy him...

The Dark Stone began to glow ever brighter as Lilac breathed huge fumes of dark, purple flames out of her mouth. This was the first time the stone had been used in millenniums and it was finally getting its change to shine. If the glowing of the stone indicated emotions of any kind, then the stone must be the happiest gem in the world. Lilac breathed another tongue of flames at a building, incinerating it instantly. Brick and mortar became ashes in mere seconds. The corrupted dragon bellowed another roar of glee. She was enjoying herself. This city was a playground of destruction just for her to cause. Every breath of flame that destroyed any inch of the city was glory incarnate for the Dark Stone Dragon. Lilac raised a huge foot and slammed it down on the ground, causing huge cracks in the asphalt. No inch of the city would be unharmed, not even the ground. A very foolish Avalician had picked up a ball and had decided to throw it straight at Lilac's eye. He missed her eye and just hit her on the knee instead. Lilac felt it and she bellowed angrily at the Avalician. Seeing that he was hopelessly outmatched, the Avalician ran for his life. Lilac just watched, relishing in the sheer terror of the feeling Avalician. Why bother killing any of them when watching their fear so much fun? She would definitely have to kill anybody who dared to attack her, that much she knew. As soon as her would-be-attacker had left, Lilac raised up her head and blasted another jet of flames from out of her mouth up into the sky for no real reason other than to just intimidate anybody watching. Thunder clapped and lightening flashed through the sky as if trying to compliment her scary appearance.

As Lilac went on her rampage, Carol scampered towards Shang Mu. She was exhausted and her aching muscles were screaming at her, begging for her to stop and give them a much needed rest. But her mind ignored them. She was almost there, she couldn't stop now! The wildcat was panting furiously as she ran, taking deep inhales though her nose and then breathing it out again with every sprint so as to preserve energy and keep her going. As Carol neared Shang Mu, she quickly saw that just as she had feared, she was too late. Lilac had already started attacking the city and seemed to be doing an awfully good job at it. She watched her possessed best friend tear apart a building with a quick breath of flames and then move onto the next one. She had to stop this madness and fast before Lilac incinerated the whole city! Carol scampered straight into the city, allowing herself the pleasure of slowing down her sprinting so that she could get some more breath back into her very tired lungs. As she got closer to Lilac, the black-scaled dragon seemed to get bigger and bigger. It pained her to see what her friend had become but she was going to stop it. Natalya and Brevon's wicked plan was not going to carry on any longer. Carol screeched to a halt, although she was so physically exhausted that she more or less tripped over herself and came to a halt. She allowed herself some precious moments to get the breath back into her body, watching as Lilac's tail whipped through the air and crashed into some buildings behind her, knocking them down and destroying them effortlessly. Now Carol had gotten her breath back, she weakly picked herself up, cupped her hands around her mouth and forced herself to scream.

"LILAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAC!"

Surprisingly enough, the dragon actually heard her! The rampaging beast stopped what she was doing and she turned her head around to see who had screamed her name. She saw Carol for the first time since her transformation. Her horrible red eyes fixated on the puny wildcat before her. Did she know this Avalician? Despite having a mind for destruction, Lilac was sure that she knew who this little cat was. She stomped towards Carol, growling softly at her as if preparing to eat her alive. Carol backed away nervously with her hands held out. Now was the time to help her friend.

"Lilac…easy girl…easy." she croaked, her voice hoarse from the scream earlier, "It's me. Carol. Your best friend…your closest comrade. Remember me?"

Lilac snorted at her, fumes steaming out of her nostrils. Carol tried again.

"You must remember me!" she cried, "You…must remember me! Remember…remember when we first…met?"

Lilac snorted again but her expression seemed to soften a little. Her mostly mindless brain was whirring. Did she remember when she first met this feline? Maybe she did. But the memories were quite fuzzy. Did they really matter? She was sure they did. Carol could see that her words were beginning to work. Maybe Lilac wasn't totally corrupted! Smiling, Carol continued.

"We were…members of the Red Scarves…when we met." the green-furred Avalician continued, "You…saved me from a group of thugs…that were trashing my motorcycle and beating me up. You saved me that day. And since then…I've owed you my life. I'm grateful to you…for saving me that day Lilac. You MUST remember that!"

The dragon let out a thoughtful growl as she thought hard on the subject matter. Yes…those memories were beginning to come to her. Carol's story sounded very familiar. Maybe…

"And you must…remember who you…really are." Carol continued, "You're Lilac the Dragon Girl…heroine of Avalice…Little Miss Heropants…a pain in the butt sometimes…but a great person every other time. You'd…never hurt anybody unless they were wicked…you'd never destroy your…own world. You fight to protect it…and you fight for the world…because you love it! You love your people, you love your friends…and you love your world! Please…don't let the Dark Stone make you a monster Lilac!"

The wildcat then walked towards Lilac and did something surprising. She held her arms out wide…and then leant against Lilac's leg and gently embraced it. The dragon was surprised at such a kind gesture. The Dark Stone's glow was beginning to dampen. It seemed that the heroic Avalician still had some decency left in her. She lowered her head down to Carol's height and the wildcat found herself staring straight into her corrupted friend's evil eyes. Despite being red, they seemed softer, almost affectionate. Carol then reached out a hand and gently touched Lilac's nose.

"Please come back to me." she said softly, "You're my best friend…and I love you. You mean everything to me…my friend."

Lilac took in the wildcat's kind words and much to the wildcat's amazement…she closed her eyes and nuzzled her nose against her hand. It seemed to be working! The Dark Stone's curse was beginning to wear off! It seemed her presence was enough to feed Lilac the positive emotions she needed to combat the evil power of the gem. In a matter of moments, Lilac would turn back to normal and this nightmare would be over. Carol beamed delightedly. She had returned the favour at long last. Lilac had saved her before, now she was saving her. But then just as the Dark Stone's glow began to fade even more, a huge cannon blast shot out from nowhere and hit Lilac in the side! The dragon let out a thunderous roar of pain and she turned around fiercely to see who had just shot her. Or to be more precise, WHAT had shot her. Mayor Zao's army were in attack formation and piloting red tanks with huge gun turrets and equally as huge treads. The Mayor himself was riding in one of the tanks. He wanted to present himself as a big hero so everybody could fawn over him like all loyal subjects must do to their leader. Carol stared in horror at the tanks. Trust Mayor Zao to pick the worst time possible to attack her best friend!

"Oh thanks a lot Mayor Dumbass!" she sighed.

Any sense of tenderness in Lilac was now gone. The Dark Stone's glow was back to being bright and malevolent and the dragon's mind was focused on one thing…destruction. Bellowing in rage, Lilac let out a huge jet of flames from the pit of her stomach and straight at the tanks. Most of them had already started moving out of the way but at least three of them were not so lucky. They were incinerated instantly by the attack. Mayor Zao's tank positioned itself around Lilac's left side and opened fire.

"KILL THAT BEAST! DON'T LET IT LIVE!" Zao bellowed frantically, hopping up and down like an angry flea just next to the tank driver.

"NO! STOP! STOP SHOOTING AT LILAC!" Carol screamed as the tanks took position and opened fire.

But her screams were drowned out by the sounds of heavy tank fire. Huge red, sparkling blasts rained out of the tank turrets and pounded into Lilac's tough, scaly body. The angry dragon howled in anguish. Her body was strong but she was still capable of feeling pain and the tanks were giving her an agonizing amount of it. As she took the heavy bombardment, Lilac had an idea on how to stop the Mayor's attacking forces. She flapped her wings, sending huge gusts of wind sweeping towards the attacking tanks and she lifted up off the ground, still taking the heavy fire from the military vehicles. Then she allowed herself to drop straight down onto the ground. It was like dropping a bowling ball onto a glass table. The dragon slammed down vigorously, sending huge shockwaves punching through the tanks and throwing them backwards. Huge chunks of the ground stood up from the slam and cracks spread everywhere. Poor Carol was thrown off of her feet. As she hit the ground, she winced as spasms of pain flooded up her already worn out and exhausted body. She glanced up as Lilac let out another thunderous roar that seemed well-timed as lightening flashed and thunder clapped once again. The tanks, who had mostly withstood the attack, trundled backwards towards Lilac and began shooting at her again. The monstrous creature retaliated by breathing huge tongues of fire at the shooting vehicles. They were mere toys to her and she was going to destroy every last one of them. The tanks were incinerated instantly. Carol could only watch as her best friend went on this murderous rampage. What would Lilac think to all of this if she remembered any of it?

Mayor Zao's tank trundled towards the attacking monster and the driver activated the tank's flamethrower. They were, as they saying goes, fighting fire with fire. The flames were searing hot and even Lilac wasn't immune to their heat. She let out a screech as the tank's flamethrower spurted out at her leg. Angered, Lilac kicked at the tank and threw it clean into the air like a toy car. Zao had already bailed out before the tank had been sent flying, leaving the unfortunate driver to his grisly fate as the tank crashed down onto the ground, crushing him like an empty soda can. Carol couldn't watch anymore, she had to calm Lilac down again! She forced herself onto her feet as Lilac bore over Mayor Zao. The red panda was utterly terrified. He looked as if he might wet himself as the black-scaled dragon snarled at her.

"Don't eat me! Don't eat me!" he whimpered, "I'm too handsome and glorious to be eaten!"

Lilac ignored him and she opened up her huge jaws, streams of saliva stretching between her teeth. Zao screamed like a little girl and he covered his eyes, expecting to find himself inside the dragon's stomach any moment now. She was just about to close her jaws around Zao and gobble him up whole until Carol leapt into the air and kicked her in the nose. This proved to be a grave mistake for Lilac growled menacingly at her friend. She now associated Carol with being a threat and was going to kill her now. She glared at her best friend and opened her mouth wide. Carol screamed and jumped aside as a whoosh of flames blasted out towards her. She lay down on the ground, petrified with fear as Lilac reared up and let out an angry cry of rage and hate. She stared at Lilac, unable to move. The dragon looked down at Carol and opened up her jaws, ready for another attack.

"NO! No! Please Lilac!" Carol begged, "I'm your best friend, remember?! You'd never hurt me! Please don't do this!"

Her pleads fell upon deaf ears as Lilac lowered her head, ready to snatch Carol up into her jaws and eat her alive. Carol curled up into a fetal position, utterly terrified and all out of ideas. This was how it was going to end for her, swallowed up whole by her own best friend. She supposed Natalya would be ecstatic over this turnout. But just as Carol was sure she was dead, a huge green block suddenly flew out of nowhere and slammed straight into Lilac's face. The dragon growled angrily and looked around to see where the attack had come from. The wildcat sat up and found herself jaw-dropping in astonishment at what her eyes were set upon. Standing just metres away from her were Torque, Milla, Miguel, Lela and Terra! They looked very much alive and not the least bit burnt in the slightest! Milla had thrown the block at Lilac and she already had another one in her hands, ready to throw.

"GUYS?!" Carol hollered, "You're…you're alive?! But…but the treehouse was burnt down! You were in it! Brevon's robot thingy told me and Lilac that you perished in the blaze!"

"Well I guess Brevon jumped the gun a little." sneered Torque, "We escaped before we could be burned alive."

"We came all the way to Shang Mu to warn Lilac about her house but…it seems that the Dark Stone got to her." said Milla sadly, gazing up at her sister-figure in dismay, "Poor Lilac!"

"Oh the poor dear!" wailed Lela, her eyes filled with tears, "What on Avalice as Natalya done to her?!"

"She must have made Lilac so enraged that the Dark Stone was able to corrupt her." murmured Miguel.

"That's exactly…what happened!" Carol blustered wildly, "Brevon and Natalya…tortured me and then they burnt Lilac's house down, thinking you had been killed with it, and they threatened to kill me! Once Lilac…snapped, Brevon's snake henchman threw the Dark Stone…at her back and then Lilac was transformed into this!"

"I can't believe Brevon got past our fleet!" Terra growled, kicking the ground in anger, "Stupid, stupid, stupid! We should have known he wasn't going to give up so easily! I bet one of his ships turned invisible and sneaked right under our noses!"

"And it seems he's teamed up with Natalya." Torque murmured, "That must have made poor Lilac feel horrified. We'll get those monsters later though, we have to save Lilac!"

"I think we should get the Dark Stone away from her!" Milla declared, "That'll calm her down and turn her back to normal!"

"It'll be on her back." Carol theorized, "Find the Dark Stone on her back and get it away from her!"

"But the Magister told us not to touch it!" Lela noted, "We can't just yank it off of her!"

"Then we blast the damn thing off!" Terra shouted, whipping out her pistols, "I'm sorry if this hurts Lilac but it's for her own damn good!"

"Please be careful!" begged Carol frantically, "We wanna save Lilac, not kill her, just remember that!"

"Oh believe me Carol, I want the one who made Brevon a laughing stock saved as much as you do…" the turquoise alien muttered.

Now that the heroes had a battle plan, Terra activated her jet boots and took to the skies. Torque flew after his best friend with Milla close behind him. Miguel and Lela stayed put and helped Carol back onto her feet. Having pushed herself beyond her limits for a little too long, Carol no longer had any strength left in her to fight or even carry on as she had done anymore. She needed to rest and she needed a lot of it. So Carol was content to just sit and watch as the Chasers and Milla commenced with their battle plan. Miguel and Lela weren't taking part for they knew they were useless. They didn't have any way of getting the Dark Stone off of Lilac without touching it themselves. They both watched with worry as Milla threw the energy block she had already summoned a moment ago at Lilac's face to distract her while Torque and Terra flew around behind the dragon. As Lilac roared at Milla in annoyance, the two aliens spotted the Dark Stone on Lilac's back. It sat in the centre of her back just between the bases of her wings. The dark, purple glow of the Dark Stone was enough to look unsettling to the two aliens. If evil could be summed up with one single piece of jewellery, the Dark Stone would be that single piece of jewellery. Both Chasers aimed their guns at Lilac's back and prepared to fire.

"I hope this doesn't hurt too much…" Torque said softly.

Being how he loved Lilac so much, he couldn't bear the thought of causing her too much pain, even if it was for a good cause. His face fell as he pulled the triggers on his pistols and let loose a torrent of laser blasts at the Dark Stone. With any luck, he could destroy it instantly and that would be it. Quick, hopefully painless and done with. But it wasn't as easy as that. The shots hit home but the Dark Stone withstood the attacks. The gem was by no means indestructible but like the Kingdom Stone before it, it would take a lot of power to destroy it. Brevon's ship blowing up had reduced the Kingdom Stone to its current form, a swirling mass of stars. The Dark Stone was likely just as hard to break apart. All the shots ended up doing was causing Lilac to screech in pain. She whirled around and glared directly at Torque and Terra. She opened her mouth and lunged at them, preparing to eat them whole. Both Chasers dodged the dragon's attack and they flew around her back again. Terra took aim and unleashed a volley of shots at the evil gem on the corrupted dragon's back. The shots hit the stone but all they did was cause Lilac agonizing pain. The stone still refused to break. Lilac turned her head around and saw Terra. Angered, she unleashed a huge breath of flames at the Chaser. Terra screamed in terror and flew out of the way before she could be incinerated. The turquoise alien flew up to a safe height and let herself have a moment to catch her breath.

"I can't believe I'm saying this…but I miss Serpentine!" she blustered, "At least I could handle him fairly easily!"

She flew back down towards Lilac, hoping to get behind her and take another shot at the Dark Stone. But Lilac was getting wise to her tactics. She already knew what the Chaser was about to do. And because of this, she had already raised her tail and was taking aim at the annoying twerp that was shooting at her. She swung it at Terra and walloped her dead on with it. The Chaser let out a cry of surprise and pain as she was sent hurling down towards the ground. She felt like she had been smacked by a giant whip. Torque cried out in horror and flew towards Terra to catch her but Milla was closer to her so she caught her instead. Surprisingly, Terra was still conscious despite how hard the attack was. The little dog carried the winded Chaser down to the ground and let her have a moment to regain her strength as the attack had left her feeling sore. And to think Serpentine had left her feeling achy and Spade had knocked her out earlier. This wasn't her day at all. Torque and Milla flew back into the battle, charging towards Lilac like whizzing arrows. Lilac opened her jaws and let loose a tornado of flames that spiralled towards them. Torque flew out of the way while Milla quickly summoned a shield and held it in front of herself to block the attack. The flames hit her and pushed her down into the ground due to how powerful the force of the attack was. Thankfully for Milla, her shield held firm and saved her from a fiery death.

While Lilac had been doing this, Torque had flown behind the huge dragon and was once again shooting at the Dark Stone on her back. Surely the gem would give in and break to pieces by now given he and Terra had already given it a heavy bombarding? But alas, his hopes were dashed as he saw once again, his attack had no effect on the Dark Stone. The Chaser found himself getting a little frustrated. Did he have to set a bomb on the Dark Stone and blow it to pieces? He didn't dare consider that possibility since it would more likely kill Lilac than save her. He had to keep shooting. The Dark Stone would give in eventually. But as Torque blasted away at the gem, Lilac let out an agonized howl that sounded more angry than pained. She was getting annoyed of those little maggots constantly shooting at her back and she wanted to put a stop to it. She turned around and lunged at Torque with her mouth wide open. The Chaser tried to fly away but he was a fraction too slow. And in battle, even being the tiniest bit slow can be costly. Lilac's jaws closed around Torque, trapping him inside. The Chaser cried out in horror and quickly pushed his hands up against the roof of Lilac's mouth. He managed to force the jaws open but he knew he was fighting a battle he couldn't win. He couldn't try flying away for Lilac's teeth were in the way. They'd close down on him before he was halfway out of her mouth. The Chaser grunted as he pushed up with his hands and down with his feet to keep the dragon's mouth open. If the jaws closed, he'd never have another chance. He would be swallowed whole and that would be the end of him. His muscles throbbed with protest as he forced himself to keep Lilac from closing her jaws. The dragon pushed down hard, trying to seal her snack inside so she could be rid of him.

"Lilac…please, don't!" Torque begged, "You wouldn't…eat one of your best friends…right?!"

The dragon did not listen to the Chaser. Her corrupted mind saw no friends or companions, only threats. Threats that kept trying to hurt her and maybe even kill her. She knew one thing that she had to do with these attacking Avalicians, kill them before they could kill her. And then her destructive rampage could continue. Torque's arms were beginning to give way. He was running out of precious strength and Lilac could feel his resistance weakening. How foolish it had been of the Chaser to even attempt to stop her from eating him. She was always going to win right from the start. But just as it looked like Torque was done for, Milla flew up to Lilac's face and threw another energy block straight into the dragon's eye. Lilac let out an earth-shaking roar of pain and she opened her mouth wide enough for Torque to get away at last. Relieved, the alien commander activated his jet boots and flew away before Lilac could close her mouth again. The enraged dragon turned her head to face Milla and she snarled a vicious, blood-curdling snarl at her. The dog gulped nervously.

"L-L-Lilac. I-I-it's m-m-me!" Milla whimpered, "Y-y-your f-f-friend, M-Milla! Please s-s-stop a-a-attacking u-u-us and b-b-b-be n-n-nice again!"

Lilac's response was to snap her jaws at Milla, causing the dog to shriek in terror and back away. Never in the young dog's life had she been so scared. Not even when she had been turned into a mutant by Brevon. In a way, Milla felt like what Lilac felt like when the dragon had been forced to fight her after the evil warlord had turned her into a monster. It was a strange case of deja vu, only the opposite way around. Nevertheless, the puppy was still grateful to Lilac for saving her life that day and she would now return the favour. Milla summoned a shield in front of herself, this shield a huge green block that was stronger than her other shields and she fired an enormous green laser blast from it that punched straight into the corrupted heroine's face. Lilac backed away, accidentally crashing against a building as she did so and she roared in annoyance. Lilac opened her jaws and breathed huge purple flames at Milla. The terrified dog flew out of the way of the flames. She had survived being burnt alive already, she wasn't going to be burnt alive now. But as Milla flew out of the way, Lilac raised her tail and slammed it down onto the dog's back. The child squealed as she was hit and started hurtling down towards the ground. Terra, who was still waiting to recover, saw this and quickly ran over to save Milla from a nasty collision with the ground. The Chaser threw herself forward and caught the puppy in her hands. Terra and Milla both tumbled over onto the ground with Terra finishing up on top of Milla. Lilac glared down at the two females and was about to burn them to cinders until Torque shot at her again. She felt the laser shots punch hard into the Dark Stone on her back and she growled angrily in annoyance. She spun around and blasted a jet of flames at Torque. The Chaser dodged but just as he flew aside Lilac, the dragon smacked him with her hand. The stricken alien winced as he was hit and he hurled down towards Milla and Terra. The dog saved him with a shield that she used to cushion his fall. Torque hit it and Milla put the shield away so he could now come to rest on the ground. Torque picked himself up and stared helplessly at Lilac as she towered over him, Milla and Terra. She was preparing to finish them off, her mouth already glowing purple inside.

"It's no use! We can't destroy the Dark Stone!" Torque wailed, "It's too strong for our attacks!"

"Poor Lilac!" whimpered Milla.

"We've gotta keep trying, we can't give in!" Terra declared, "Lilac's depending on us!"

The green Chaser nodded agreeably. Lilac never gave up on him in her darkest hours so why should he give up on her? It would be a disgraceful way to return the favour. The three heroes prepared once again to attack Lilac just as the dragon was about to unleash another torrent of flames at them. But her rampage was soon to come to an end. Unbeknownst to anybody, Syntax had teleported just behind Lilac and she was hovering over the Dark Stone. She reached out with her metallic appendages and she grabbed the gem. The only way to get the Dark Stone off of somebody was to remove it and since Syntax was a robot, she wouldn't be corrupted by it. She was safe. Syntax pulled on the Dark Stone as hard as she could, causing Lilac to stop what she was doing and bellow in anguish. Pulling on the stone was like somebody trying to pull a giant scab off of her back. Torque, Terra and Milla watched with puzzlement at what Lilac was doing. Why was she roaring in pain? Then finally, with one mighty pull, Syntax wrenched the Dark Stone free from the huge dragon's back. The stone's glow died down into a natural, luminous aurora upon being removed from its cursed victim. Now the stone was free from Lilac's body, Syntax teleported away, leaving the monstrous dragon to screech pained wails of anguish as all the dark power within her body faded away. Carol, Milla, Torque, Terra, Miguel and Lela stared, utterly dumbfounded by what was happening. Lilac was turning back to normal! But how? They didn't destroy the Dark Stone...did they? They watched as the huge size of the dragon began to shrink down to Lilac's normal height. Her claws retracted back into fingers and toes, her eyes became magenta once again, her wings vanished and her tail grew shorter. Her skin was also beginning to turn back into her natural lilac colours. Her roars began to fade back into her normal voice and soon they sounded more like screams than roars. And finally, Lilac's trademark tendrils shrunk back to their proper length. The moment the transformation ended, the overwhelmed dragon collapsed onto the ground and closed her eyes. Was finally back to normal but having torn through her clothes during the transformation, she was completely naked. Torque's first instinct was to look away from Lilac, wanting dearly to respect her privacy. Terra did the same, not wanting to give Lilac the humiliation of realizing she was naked in front of two aliens. Carol ran over to the unconscious dragon and threw herself down onto her knees beside her best friend. Miguel stood forward and took of his vest. He had nothing on underneath his vest but for once he didn't care. He was too happy to walk around topless if it meant giving Lilac her decency back.

"Here, put this on her." he said kindly, handing his vest to Carol.

Carol obeyed and she slipped the vest onto Lilac and zipped it up. It was a little too big for the dragon, coming down just halfway up her thighs, but it didn't matter. It just covered her up more. The moment Carol put the vest on, she waited for Lilac to respond. She didn't. The dragon lay there, completely still and unconscious. Trembling worriedly, Carol placed her ear against the dragon's chest. There was a very weak heartbeat. Would it get weaker and weaker and thus, prevent Lilac from ever waking up? The wildcat could feel the tears of despair trickling down her face.

"Oh no..." she sobbed, "Oh no...Lilac...Lilac you can't die! Wake up! WAKE UP!"

She shook her friend frantically, trying her best to wake up the poor dragon. But Lilac didn't stir. She lay there, deathly still and barely even breathing. The tomboy feline could feel herself going hysterical. Had the Dark Stone decided to spite them and kill Lilac so that she couldn't live to redeem herself? The Magister hadn't told them what happened once somebody who was powered by the Dark Stone powered down. Maybe that was it, the victim dies. Simple as that. Losing her mind with horror, Carol threw her arms around the unconscious dragon and sobbed like she had never sobbed before.

"NOOOOOO!" Carol howled, "Lilac don't die! Please! Please don't die! I can't live without my best friend, I just can't! Please wake up!"

She knew it was futile. Utterly, utterly futile. Lilac was clearly dead. She wouldn't hear her pleads. Excepting the worst, Carol lowered her head into Lilac's chest and cried, feeling that she was never going to stop. Milla was in tears too, clutching her parents and sobbing as if she'd just found out she was dying of cancer.

"Lilac's dead!" Milla sobbed hysterically, "Poor, poor Lilac..."

Miguel and Lela embraced their howling child and shed a few tears of their own with her. Lilac was such a brave, wonderful person and she had taken good care of Milla while they had been prisoners of the Red Scarves. They owed Lilac a lot for taking care of Milla. But now Lilac was dead. They imagined Milla would be horrifically scarred by the turnout. She'd never recover from this tragedy. Torque and Terra turned around, relived to see that Lilac wasn't naked anymore, and they shared a sad glance over at the dragon. Torque also began to cry. He loved Lilac, even though he knew that he shouldn't, and now she was dead. Lord Brevon would be so happy to hear this, he had no doubt about that.

"Oh no..." Torque sobbed quietly.

"I'm afraid so buddy...it seems that poor old Lilac's dead." Terra said sadly, "Brevon must be laughing his ass off right now..."

"Looks like he's won again." the crying alien muttered, "And to think I wondered if me and Lilac...had...had something special between us..."

"You loved her?" Terra gasped. She remembered how Carol had suggested that Lilac had feelings for the Chaser earlier. It seemed Torque echoed those feelings.

"Well...maybe...perhaps..." Torque mumbled, "I know I shouldn't...but I really did feel that me and Lilac...had a connection that I've never had with anybody before."

"Oh man..." the female Chaser said sadly, embracing her best friend for comfort, "These poor people have lost their friend...and you've lost your love. Oh Torque, I'm so sorry that this has happened to you."

"It's nobody's fault except Natalya and Brevon's..." Torque wept, patting Terra on the back, "If I ever see them again then..."

His angry words quickly died in his throat as something unbelievable happened. Lilac...coughed! Carol's head shot up in alarm as she heard and felt the dragon coughing and spluttering as if she had been suffocating in clouds of smoke. Everybody stopped crying and stared incredulously at the dragon. The moment Lilac stopped coughing, she groaned groggily and then turned her head to see Carol. Her beautiful magenta eyes opened up slowly and she saw that Carol was kneeling beside her, her eyes still soaked with tears but a big smile of relief on her face. Lilac smiled weakly back at Carol.

"Hey..." Lilac whispered, her voice hoarse, "I...didn't know...you cared...so much...about me."

"LILAC!" Carol squealed ecstatically, grasping her best friend in a bearhug and shrieking excitedly, "OHMIGOSH, YOU'RE ALIVE!"

"I won't be...if you keep...squeezing me like that!" Lilac yelped frantically.

Carol let go of her best friend and everybody gathered around her eagerly, pleased to see that she was alive. What a relief this was.

"Yay! Lilac's alive!" Milla cheered.

"Thank heavens above..." Lela sighed, her hands over her heart in relief.

"How do you feel?" asked Torque, his voice full of concern, "Are you OK?"

"No...I'm not..." Lilac responded, her voice full of sadness and despair, "I remember it all...every single bit of what I did. Transforming into that monster, smashing through buildings and incinerating them, nearly killing all of you guys and I even nearly killed Mayor Zao! I remember Carol calming me down but then I was attacked and I started going on a rampage. I was even going to kill her! I nearly ATE you alive Torque!" she shrieked, waving her arms about and gesticulating wildly.

"Oh gosh..." said Torque quietly.

"Oh Lilac, you remember it all?" asked Carol, "That's really bad..."

"I know...I wish I DIDN'T remember any of it!" wailed Lilac, "But the worst part is...the whole thing is all my fault! I shouldn't have listened to that note! I shouldn't have gone alone! But I did! And now because of my stupidity, Lord Brevon and Natalya successfully managed to corrupt me and use me to cause chaos while they go ahead with whatever plan they have together!"

As the dragon ranted, tears began to trickle down her face. They were a mixture of anger and sadness.

"It's all my fault! I fell into their trap! I played into their hands! And now they've made me demolish much of Shang Mu and possibly kill several people, the things I'd NEVER do in my life!" sobbed Lilac, "I'm so sorry everybody! I'm so sorry…"

Unable to carry on, Lilac just threw herself onto her knees and bawled her eyes out into her hands. She sobbed like she had never sobbed before in her life. The sound of Lilac's wailing was truly heart-wrenching. Carol and Milla felt like they wanted to cry for their friend but that would just make things more upsetting. They had to be strong for her. Torque had nothing but sympathy for his friend and he wished more than ever that he could have stopped this from happening. After leaving Lilac to cry for a minute, Carol decided to comfort her weeping best friend. Milla wanted to comfort her too so both cat and dog knelt down beside Lilac. They both wrapped their arms around her and patted her softly on the back.

"Please don't cry Lilac! We know that you're sorry and we forgive you." said Milla sweetly, "Brevon and Natalya made you do this. It's their fault this happened!"

"Listen to Milla Lilac, she's absolutely right." Carol insisted, "You didn't touch the Dark Stone or anything. You're not the one who used it to attack us all. It was THEM. They made you mad, they drove you round the bend and they used the stone on you. It was them who stole it in the first place. It was never your fault this happened. If they never got it, this wouldn't have happened. But now you're all better again, we can clean up the mess they made you cause!"

The dragon lifted up her head and she smiled appreciatively at her two best friends. Even in her darkest hour they somehow managed to lift up her spirits and make her feel better. She pulled the two close to her gleefully.

"Thanks girls…you're the best!" she cried, "I don't know what I'd do without you two. You're the best things that's ever happened to me."

"Aww don't sweat it." said Carol casually, "Were just looking out for you like you look out for us."

"We love you Lilac and we wanna make you happy again!" Milla exclaimed excitedly.

"And I love you two." the dragon said appreciatively, "Thank you so much for your kind words. Now then, let's find Natalya and Brevon and give them a not-so-warm-welcome!"

"You're not going anywhere traitor!" yelled an arrogant yet impudent sounding voice.

Everybody jumped in alarm upon hearing the voice and they turned to see that Mayor Zao was standing before them, looking a little frazzled but otherwise unhurt. He had all of his surviving guards with him, all armed with shields and guns and the guns were pointing at the heroes! Lilac's face fell. She knew exactly what was going to happen now.

"So Lilac, using the Dark Stone to attack my city are you?!" the mayor snarled angrily, "Well tough titty for you that your evil plan has failed thanks to these exceptionally heroic people!" he added, pointing at Carol, Milla, Miguel, Lela, Torque and Terra.

"Mayor please, let me explain…" Lilac began.

"SILENCE!" Zao barked fiercely, "You've committed treason against our world and there's only one place you're going now for that crime…IN PRISON!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Oh for the love of Avalice! Just when it looked like things were looking up, we hit rock bottom again! Will Lilac convince the Mayor she's innocent? Or is she just trying to accomplish the impossible? And what of Brevon and Natalya? What's their next big plan since they still have the Dark Stone? All this and more in Chapter 9 next time...<strong>_


	10. Chapter 9: Alliance Terminated

_Chapter 9: Alliance Terminated_

Unbeknownst to anybody, the destruction of Shang Mu had been going on with two notorious people watching it happen before their very eyes, enjoying each and every moment of it. Those two people were the very people who had caused Lilac to be possessed by the Dark Stone and transformed into a monstrous Dragon of Destruction. They were Natalya and Brevon. As soon as Lilac had flown off to destroy Shang Mu, Brevon had ordered his crew to set the ship into flight and follow her so they could take the Dark Stone back before she got too carried away. The ship was invisible, watching silently from up in the night sky completely unseen by anybody due to the ship's potent cloaking device. The two villains had watched the whole fight, completely entranced by what they had created. Natalya had had a feeling the Dark Stone was powerful but the whole mess had been beyond her expectations. Lilac had performed admirably and given how she had been attacking Mayor Zao's city, she was guaranteed to be arrested. The Magister might have been suspicious and King Dail would know better than to assume Lilac would do anything malicious after what she'd done for the world and the fact he wasn't brainwashed and crazy anymore. But Zao was a buffoon and extremely vain and arrogant. Any destruction to his city would be seen as an instant attack on his beloved image and anybody attacking Shang Mu would be branded a traitor instantly. It was Natalya and Brevon had decided to lure their purple-scaled nemesis near Shang Mu. Zao was the first person who'd brand Lilac a traitor and arrest her. Now that the Dark Stone had been retrieved and Lilac de-powered, the evil alien and dragon had no reason to stick around anymore. Best to leave now before somebody discovered their presence. With the cloaking device still activated, Brevon's ship turned around and began to fly away, leaving the poor dragon they had baited to take the fall for their evil plan.

As soon as the ship was miles away from Shang Mu, Brevon deactivated the cloaking device. His ship did not need to be invisible any longer. With his ship now visible, Brevon let out a haunting cackle of delight that filled the room. He was ecstatic with joy over what had happened. It was the first time in a while he had been so happy.

**"Utterly magnificent!" **he cackled, **"That Dark Stone gem is truly a power to behold! It corrupted the foolish girl and made her a completely mindless yet unstoppable behemoth! And now those little animals will be blaming her for everything and she'll be locked up, safely out of our way as we destroy this pitiful planet!"**

"Indeed Lord Brevon." Natalya purred, "And to think all of this had been my idea. And how beautifully it worked…"

**"Yes indeed, your plan was quite well contrived and constructed."** the alien warlord admitted, **"But working together, we executed it perfectly. I think we seem to work together surprisingly well…"**

"I know, we make a rather good team." the crime boss said sinisterly, "I think I might enjoy working for you my lord."

**"And you will make a fine addition to my army." **Brevon replied, **"Now that that plan is out of the way, there's some urgent business to take care of…"**

As he said this, he turned his back on Natalya, presumably because he didn't want her to see something. Natalya did the same, turning her back on Brevon. She had a feeling that Brevon wasn't about to present her with a gift to say thank you for helping him frame Lilac and go ahead with his nefarious plans. But luckily for her, she had prepared for this. She reached into her coat and pulled out a dagger. The dagger blade was five inches long with a golden jewelled hilt. It was a very priceless dagger and one of her most treasured steals so far.

"And what may I ask is that?" the dragon asked innocently.

**"Nothing for you to worry about." **Brevon replied smoothly, **"It's business that won't be of any concern to you."**

"Oh that's good. I was beginning to wonder if it had anything to do with me at all..." Natalya replied, her voice calm but serious.

**"Nothing of the sort." **the alien replied, **"You needn't worry about a thing..."**

Then suddenly, he whipped out his trademark ooze-soaked dagger and he spun around and it a blinding speed. Any normal person wouldn't have had any time to react at all. But Natalya was not a normal person. She had anticipated the move and had spun around at the exact same time Brevon had done so. Both alien and dragon ended up face to face with their daggers pointing at each other's throats. The sharp points of their weapons touched lightly against their skin, threatening to penetrate through and kill them both. Neither one moved, not even a millimetre. They stood still, their weapons at each other's throats and itching to run them through. They didn't dare make a move in fear of letting the other one win. Brevon smiled an icy smile at his partner.

**"Ha, ha, ha, ha! Well...looks like you had the same idea..." **he crooned.

"Funny, I was going to say the same about you." snorted Natalya.

**"You're smarter than I thought..."** Brevon purred, his voice more a tone of mockery than flattery, **"Just unfortunate for you that I was also planning to dispose of you once I didn't need you anymore."**

"Do you usually treat your comrades this way?" the dragon growled, "I can't imagine for a minute how many times you've made alliances and then killed the comrade."

**"I've done it so many times that I even wonder why anybody even trusts me anymore." **the alien gloated, **"I KNEW you was planning to betray me so I planned to betray you the moment the plan was complete. I just hoped that you weren't as sharp as I suspected you were..."**

"Well too bad." snapped Natalya, "I've been a victim of betrayal myself so it keeps me on my toes whenever I make these alliances."

**"You're a victim of betrayal? Who betrayed you before then?" **asked Brevon curiously.

"Never you mind you grotesque excuse for a living being." the villainess snarled, keeping her arm rigid so as not to give Brevon any leeway, "All you need to know is that I've been lying to you this whole time. Everything I said about Lilac and how I hate her is true...but wanting Avalice destroyed? No, that was a total lie! I don't want my planet destroyed, I want to honour the dragon race by ruling it! I could never dishonour my ancestors by destroying the very planet they blessed! I maybe no saint, but I HAVE standards!"

**"I'm dreadfully sorry to hear that."** lied Brevon, **"So you tricked me into thinking you wanted the planet destroyed. I had a feeling that was the case. But why have the Dark Stone? You told me that'll cause the cursed victim to destroy this miserable excuse for a planet. Or was that a lie too?"**

Natalya gritted her teeth as if Brevon labelling her planet in such a way pinched a very bad nerve in her.

"I wanted to tame the stone's power so that I would be invincible, but I WOULDN'T destroy Avalice!" the dragon retorted, "With the power of the stone under my control, I'd be the most powerful being on the planet and nobody would dare say no to me! Once I've disposed of you, I shall forget all about our horrible alliance and go back to my original plan!"

**"If you didn't like the alliance then why make it in the first place?" **the warlord asked.

"Simple. I wanted you to help me get rid of Lilac." Natalya snapped as if implying Brevon's question was a stupid one, "And also you would have helped corrupt her so the stone would affect her. You was literally just a pawn in my big game. I played you like a puppet on a string Brevon and you was stupid enough to play along with my twisted game. No wonder Lilac made a joke out of you...you're not as smart as you think you are."

The alien surprisingly kept a well-composed stature although deep inside, he was seething with rage at the fact this impudent woman even DARED to indicate he was an idiot. Nobody ever called him stupid and lived! He still didn't dare try to run Natalya through in fear of getting run through himself though. He had to keep playing for time, give Syntax or Serpentine or somebody to come in and help him. Maybe he could try weakening Natalya mentally and make her give him enough leeway for him to make the finishing blow.

**"So you think I'm not as smart as I make myself out as?" **Brevon sneered, **"I guess you haven't heard of the fact I manipulated the three kingdoms into waging war so I could make off with the Kingdom Stone."**

"Oh tish, anybody could have done that." Natalya muttered, "The kingdoms are so uncivilized and buffoonish that you just have to fire a gun off in their presence and they'll leap onto each other like a pack of wolves. I could have done that easily."

**"If that's the case then why would you want to rule this world if it's so uncivilized?" **the curious alien asked.

"So that I can IMPROVE it." the dragon retorted, "Under my leadership, there'll be no wars between kingdoms and everybody will do as I say. I'll rule all three kingdoms at once and nobody will dare defy me. I'm trying to SAVE Avalice from itself. Avalice is just a disaster waiting to happen and I only wish to bring it to order before the kingdoms end up wasted and ruined!"

The insidious world conqueror grinned wickedly upon hearing Natalya's claims. The foolish woman had unknowingly played into his hands and he could now steer the conversation into a way that would weaken Natalya's composure.

**"So you think that Avalice will be a much more civil world with you as the ruler?" **Brevon sneered, **"Well I'm about to tell you…that you're an even bigger fool than our lilac nemesis!" **he declared, his face a dark, sinister smile that made him look like an attraction for a ghost train ride.

"How dare you indicate I lack any intellect you disgusting little freak of nature!" Natalya snarled.

**"But you do…you see, the world will NOT be a better place with you as its ruler." **the alien explained, **"And why? Because not everybody will accept you as their ruler! I know the worlds I've conquered don't accept me as their ruler but I do not care. I don't conquer worlds to better them…I conquer to aggrandize myself and show the universe the true power that I and my army possess. You on the other hand want to make this world "better". Well did you consider that there will be rebellions against you? Even with my unfathomable power I am not without my rebels. People on this world will rebel against you and then you'll end up in a fight that'll see you dead or imprisoned and then the status quo will return to normal. And what of those who are loyal to you? They'll war with the rebels and bring ruination to Avalice. You're not ceasing wars and making the world a better place with your ambitions…you're just giving them another excuse to start a war! And you won't even benefit from it for you're going to be targeted by the rebels and your defenders will be slaughtered just so you can pay for their oppression! Face it girl, you're only doing this to satisfy your own ego. That's all your ambitions will end up doing. You. Are. A. FOOL!"**

Natalya stared at Brevon as if the alien had just made her see herself for the first time ever. She stared incredulously at the warlord pointing a dagger at her throat and felt herself feeling shaky and numb. The whole world seemed to be spinning around her. She couldn't feel her arm anymore. Natalya analysed Brevon's words at a speed that most people would never be able to analyse successfully at. Her brain was very good at thinking quickly, making choices and analysing spoken sentences very fast. She eventually came to a conclusion. Brevon was absolutely right! Logic dictated that he was totally, utterly right! Her plans weren't for the benefit of Avalice at all! She was trying to achieve an impossible task, a task that wouldn't in anyway honour the dragon race! The dragon was so shocked at this realization that she stepped away from Brevon and lowered her arm. The alien warlord remained where he was, waiting for Natalya's response. He wanted to kill her with the satisfaction that he had truly broken her. The dragon stared at the floor, her mind whirling like crazy over what Brevon had told her.

"No…this…this isn't…this isn't what I want!" she wailed, "I don't want people fighting over me! I want Avalice to be civilized, in harmony and under my leadership with no fights and warfare! But…but you're right…you're so right! I'm not making the world any better by doing what I'm doing! My plans are nothing more than a fantasy dream that I've been stupid enough to dwell in!"

**"So glad you agree with me…" **Brevon purred.

"And since my goal is nothing more than a silly fantasy I shouldn't dwell in anymore…I'm not going to conquer Avalice." the dragon declared, "Instead…I'm going to SAVE it! And I'm going to make amends for my appalling crimes by destroying the Dark Stone and then getting rid of you!"

Snarling savagely, Natalya thundered towards Brevon like an angry rhinoceros. The warlord was so stunned at this that he barely even had time to dodge. Just as he moved, Natalya caught him across the cheek with a terrific punch that sent the heavily-armoured alien's head spinning. He stumbled to the side and gripped his throbbing head. Natalya threw a kick to his chest and hit him, ignoring the pain in her foot as it slammed against the hard metal of Brevon's armour. The kick sent Brevon flying across the room and into a control panel. Luckily, it withstood the impact. Brevon picked himself up and glared viciously at Natalya with his blood red eyes. What a miserable failure this was! He hoped that his lecture had broken Natalya so much that she wouldn't fight him anymore. But instead, he just gave the woman more reason to fight him! Snarling, Brevon brandished his dagger.

**"All right then…" **the world-conqueror growled.

He and Natalya both lunged at each other, both roaring savagely as they prepared to tear each other apart…

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, all was not well in Shang Mu. Having just destroyed a good portion of the city whilst under the evil curse of the Dark Stone, Lilac was now surrounded by guards and facing the wrath of a very angry Mayor Zao. She knew why he was so mad though and it hurt her deeply to think that the mayor would seriously think for a minute that she had done all of this on purpose. She had saved his life last Christmas! How could he even dare to accuse of her treachery like this?! The dragon wanted so desperately to explain herself but unfortunately for her, the angry red panda wasn't in a listening mood. The fact that part of his city was destroyed pretty much made him deaf to any words but his own. Shang Mu was a large part of his ego and glorious image and now part of it was destroyed, it was like taking a shot at him and trying to ruin his beloved image. Zao hopped up and down like a crazed dervish, his oversized hat bouncing up and down with him.<p>

"Do you have any idea on what you could have done Lilac?!" he ranted, "Didn't you know that the Dark Stone could have caused you to destroy the world?!"

"Yes I did..." Lilac growled angrily.

"Well there you go! You knew that the stone was dangerous and yet you used it anyway!" Zao shouted, "Why did you do it?! Why?! Are you sick of saving our skins every day that you just wanted to kill us all?! Or did you just decide that you didn't like Avalice anymore and just wanted it destroyed?!"

"No! How could you say that?!" Lilac shrieked, "I would never turn my back on anybody! I'm disgusted you seriously think I would be so evil! Did you conveniently forget that I stopped Lord Brevon and Natalya, two of the biggest villains in Avalician history, last year?!"

"True but now you've gone and used the Dark Stone to become that monstrous dragon and destroy much of my city!" the mayor retorted, "And Avalician law states that it's an act of treason to use the gem so you my "friend" are going to be spending time in a lonely, dark cell for this crime! Your friends will be rewarded for stopping you before it was too late though." he added, smiling at Carol, Milla, Miguel, Lela, Torque and Terra.

"But we didn't stop her..." Milla admitted.

"It's true. She just randomly powered down and now the stone's gone." explained Carol.

"Don't be silly, you're just trying to protect that traitor you call a "friend"." Zao said briskly, "Now then guards, arrest that dragon immediately!"

"No, you can't do that!" Lilac protested, "I didn't willingly do this! Any of it! You're deathly mistake Mayor Zao!"

"Me? Mistaken? ME?!" the mayor gasped, "Why you insolent brat! How dare you! I'm NEVER mistaken! How dare you suggest such insolence to me?!"

**5+ INSOLENCE**

"Wow, even when he's mad as all hell he's still got that running gag..." Carol snorted.

"This isn't insolence Mayor, it's the truth!" Lilac snapped, "I was tricked into using the Dark Stone! Natalya stole the stone and then she tricked me into coming to her and then she and Lord Brevon teamed up together to make me angry and then they used the stone on me!"

"Please believe us Mayor! It's the absolute truth!" Torque declared.

The short and stubby politician thought for a moment about what Lilac had said. He didn't believe her for a minute. It seemed too crazy to think that Natalya and Lord Brevon were both responsible for this. He glared at the dragon.

"Lilac...I've never heard such nonsense in all my life!" he snapped, "Do you seriously expect me to believe that Natalya AND Lord Brevon did this?! That alien scoundrel hasn't been seen since you sent him packing! And Natalya wouldn't do something like this! I thought she wanted our world conquered, the Dark Stone would be out of her character to use!"

"You seriously think that Lilac's pulling your leg Mayor Dumbass?!" shouted Carol, "Well then, take a look at me!" she added, showing off her scorched fur from the electric torture she had received earlier, "Brevon did this to me! Natalya captured me and Brevon tortured me to make Lilac angry enough for the stone to effect her!"

"And they burnt Lilac's house down with us still inside." added Torque, motioning to himself, the Bassets and Terra, "All so that they could get the stone to work on Lilac. We can even show you the burnt down house to prove it."

"Nice try but I'm not falling for that old trick." the mayor muttered, "And you Carol, your blackened fur was obviously caused by Lilac's fire breath. Now enough nonsense! Guards, arrest that traitor!" he barked.

The guards did not wait a second longer. Two of them marched straight up to Lilac and they seized her by the arms. They hauled her away from the group and forced her hands behind her back. The dragon squirmed, not wanting to give-in so easily. She couldn't let herself be arrested, not while her two worst enemies were still at large!

"No, let go of me!" Lilac cried, "You can't do this, I'm innocent! Please give me a chance to prove it!"

The guards refused to listen. Holding on tightly to the pleading dragon, they hauled her away and started heading towards the Shang Mu Royal Palace, which thankfully had been spared of the Dark Stone possessed Lilac's wrath. Terra watched with anger as Lilac was unfairly escorted away. She hated injustice and she was not going to stand by and let Lilac be a victim of it!

"OK that's it, no more Miss Nice Girl..." the Chaser muttered, whipping out one of her pistols and setting it to stun mode.

Before anybody could stop her, she pointed the gun straight at the two guards and shot them both with a quick pull of the trigger. The stun blasts hit the guards like a punch to the back and knocked them clean out. They were unconscious before they even hit the ground. Mayor Zao gasped in horror but before he could do anything about it, Terra spun around and zapped him too. The mayor pulled a rather comical face as he was hit by the shot before finally collapsing onto his back. The remaining guards held up their shields, expecting Terra to suddenly shoot them too. But instead, Terra put the gun away and turned on her heels.

"Everybody run!" she yelled, "We're outta this crazy joint!"

Seeing that staying in Shang Mu was now no longer an option and more guaranteed to get them all arrested and locked up, the group decided to follow the female Chaser. They couldn't stop Natalya and Brevon if they were all locked up and since the mayor refused to believe them, it was definitely the better idea to just leave. Lilac knew for starters that she'd have an easier time convincing Shang Tu or Shuigang that she was innocent. She even thought that going to Shang Tu would be the best idea since The Magister would believe her. He had told her not to touch the stone and thus, would have no reason to dismiss her claims as lies. With that idea in mind, Lilac ran ahead of the group and took the lead as they all fled from Shang Mu. The dragon hoped early that Mayor Zao would forgive them for this and realize that she was innocent after all...

* * *

><p>Natalya grunted loudly as she found herself sharply colliding with the wall and sliding down to the foot of it. It felt like she'd taken a hammer to the face as she picked herself up and eased the pain in her body.<p>

She glared at her nefarious opponent, waiting for him to make his next move as he bent down into a battle ready stance and prepared to attack. The alien had his deadly dagger in his hands, poised and ready for a slash. His face was curled into a horrible, gloating smirk that radiated confidence and arrogance. The crime boss could tell that Lord Brevon had had many fights before, and often came out on top in them. This was an opponent like none she had ever faced before. But that wouldn't slow her down at all. Natalya knew that in order to save Avalice, she had to stop this extra-terrestrial monster dead in his tracks or the planet would pay the price for her mistakes.

The fierce dragon bared her sharp claws and gritted her teeth angrily. Brevon just smirked at her, clearly unintimidated by his draconian opponent. To him, Natalya was just another opponent waiting to be beheaded. He had taken many heads in his time and he was all too happy to take another. His dagger in hand and poised for attack, the alien lunged at Natalya. The dragon gasped and just had enough time to move out of the way. Brevon was like a torpedo, springing into action at unbelievable speeds and likely every bit as deadly as a torpedo when he struck his opponents. Natalya was fast but even she was marvelled at the speed this alien world conqueror moved at. She had to keep on her toes otherwise her head would be taken clean off her shoulders. The alien growled at the dragon and he lunged at her again, his dagger scything through the air in a clean rainbow arch sideways towards her. Natalya leaped over Brevon in one big graceful somersault and she landed just behind him. Brevon turned around but Natalya turned around quicker. Her fist shot forward straight into the alien's cheek, sending Brevon's head snapping to the side painfully and throwing him off-balance. He nearly toppled over from the attack and only ended up actually doing so when Natalya jumped up and kicked him straight into the shoulder. The armoured alien cried out and he found himself sharply colliding into the floor. He worried for a moment that the impact had dislocated his shoulder. His right arm felt a little numb from the impact but his shoulder was still functional. Brevon picked himself up and slashed at Natalya again. Natalya dodged, but not quite quick enough. Brevon's evil weapon caught her just across the left arm, leaving a nasty tear in both her leather coat sleeve and her bodysuit sleeve underneath the coat. A trickle of blood oozed out of the fresh wound just between the shoulder and elbow. The dragon cringed. She was used to being cut so she could handle the pain but it still stung a little.

Natalya ignored her bleeding cut as Brevon came thundering towards her like a wild Triceratops. The dragon reacted just quick enough to spring into the air and swung her foot upwards into Brevon's face. The alien's face snapped backwards and threw his entire upper body slightly backwards. He actually felt the bones in his spine knocking against each other as he bent uncomfortably far back from the attack. The whole thing left Brevon with a severe backache. Had he just got whiplash? The alien didn't care. He would kill Natalya even if he had to sacrifice his limbs to do it. Brevon regained his posture and he threw a terrific punch to Natalya's jaw. The punch seemed to do more than just severely hurt Natalya's jaw. It sent her head spinning and the dragon found herself unable to focus properly for a moment. Momentarily distorted, she couldn't defend herself as Brevon slugged her in the gut, then seized her by the collar and pulled her forward and threw himself onto his back. The moment he landed on his back, he swung his leg up and sent Natalya flying across the room like a baseball being pitched. The dragon let out a terrible scream as she flew across the room and crashed down onto the floor just metres away. Cackling horribly, Lord Brevon picked himself up and rubbed his face slightly.

**"That's the spirit…but you need to know that I'm the leading member of an intergalactic, world-conquering army not just for my savage might…but also my cunning!" **Brevon gloated.

Just as Natalya picked herself up, Brevon suddenly ran over to a control panel and he pressed a button on it. As he did so, a nearby door opened up and Natalya suddenly found herself being pulled towards it by a huge gust of wind that swept through the room. Brevon had opened up his ship's airlock. He was hoping to have Natalya whisked out of his ship and sent plummeting to her doom. It would be the perfect way to finish off the impudent woman. The dragon fought to keep herself from being sucked out of the airlock. She could feel the wind tugging on her like invisible hands reaching out and trying to whisk her out of the ship. Natalya couldn't lose the battle, not while the fate of Avalice was at stake! Desperately, Natalya threw herself onto the floor and sank her claws deep into the tough metal to keep herself from being sucked out. The wind tugged violently on her, desperately trying to take her outside and away from Brevon. But the dragon refused to give-in. She held on obstinately, willing herself to hold on tight. Brevon watched Natalya with annoyance as his plan began to go south. He couldn't just walk over to Natalya and force her claws out of the floor, he would be in the range of the rushing winds. He would be sucked out before he could even save himself. Sighing, the alien decided to try a different plan. He closed the airlock and stepped away from the control panel. Natalya relaxed her nerves as the door closed and the wind of the night outside died away, releasing her from its tough grip. Brevon stomped towards Natalya, his dagger back in hand and dripping green, viscous liquid on the floor. He had a look of pure death in his eyes, the eyes of the devil that preyed upon the weak souls and corrupted innocents.

**"It appears you're a warrior renowned for brains as well as brawn…such a pity that I have to waste you after all…" **Brevon muttered.

Natalya yanked her claws out from the floor and picked herself up, her red eyes full of rage and hatred. She didn't think it was possible, but she found herself hating Brevon more than she hated Lilac!

"Yes…I became the leader of the Red Scarves through savage might and also cunning, just like your status as army leader." the dragon murmured, "My cunning is how I've constantly been a step ahead of Lilac throughout the whole day and even a step ahead of YOU! And it's precisely this as to why I have a chance of stopping you and saving Avalice from your filth!"

**"Why bother saving the planet you sought to conquer?" **the alien sneered, **"Do you really think they'll welcome a pariah like you with open arms once you stop me? Do you think your lilac-skinned nemesis will actually forgive you for what you did to her and make friends with you? They won't accept you. They'll lock you up and throw away the key the moment you show your face."**

"Funny how Lilac used to be a criminal and yet her stopping you ended up causing everybody to only see her as a hero…" snorted Natalya, "I'm not expecting everybody to forgive me for my crimes. Maybe I don't want them to forgive me. Maybe I don't deserve their forgiveness. But I'm still going to do it, because I wish to maintain my honour. And in honour of the great dragon that blessed us all…I WILL TEAR YOU APART!" she suddenly bellowed, her voice angrier sounding than it had ever sounded before.

Then suddenly, the dragon leaped into action as if a spring had been released inside of her. She charged towards Lord Brevon like some wild animal hunting for prey and she leapt straight on top of him, tackling him down to the ground and clawing viciously at him. She slashed viciously at his face and chest as if trying to tear the very skin off of them. Experience had taught her that when fighting an opponent in armour, it was always the best choice to attack the exposed areas. Her five sharp claws slashed away at Brevon's face and chest, leaving nasty bloody cuts on them and causing the alien to bellow in agony. It wasn't easy to hurt Brevon. He was able to withstand laser fire shots to the head during his attack on Shuigang last year. But even he wasn't invulnerable. With an angry growl of annoyance, Brevon seized Natalya by the throat and threw her off of himself. The dragon hurled straight into a wall and came sliding down to the bottom, feeling like she'd just been hit by a lorry. The alien warlord got back up onto his feet, wiping away the dark green blood that seeped out of his wounds and he thundered towards Natalya, his heavy metal feet like thunderclaps as he stampeded towards her. The dragon picked herself up and whipped out her dagger just as Brevon threw a bone-crushing punch at her. The crime boss dodged the attack and slashed Brevon across the upper arm with her dagger. The alien cried out in pain and just before he could do anything else, Natalya grabbed his arm and sank her teeth into the wound. The scream Brevon let out was enough to rattle windowpanes. This was one of Natalya's favourite tactics in battle, attack the wounded area. It always worked for her and it was working now.

But even her favourite tactics had their times where they weren't enough. Brevon yanked his arm free of Natalya's bite and he slugged her directly in the gut. As his opponent doubled over, Brevon grabbed Natalya and slammed her callously against the wall. The dragon gasped, feeling the wind getting punched out of her as her back was slammed into the solid metal wall behind her. Laughing maniacally, Brevon then proceeded to raise Natalya above his head and throw her across the room like a basketball. The mauve-skinned Avalician spiralled through the air and came down with a crash onto her side. Spasms of pain flared up her arm and she tried to take a precious moment to ease the pain enough for her to carry on fighting. But Brevon never gave his enemies time to recover from their injuries. He rushed towards Natalya with his huge brown cape spread out behind him like giant wings. Just as Natalya picked herself up, Brevon threw a punch downwards into Natalya's face. Then he threw a powerful uppercut into the Avalician's face, taking her clean off her feet and sending her sailing into a wall. He whipped out his dagger and just as his draconian opponent got back up, her slashed her viciously across the face, leaving a deep cut that would later become a very nasty scar if she ever lived long enough for it to become one. And then Brevon aimed for a target that he knew would have Natalya in total agony. He threw a punch at the dragon's still broken nose. If there was one thing he could thank Lilac for, it was giving him a useful target. As his fist slammed into the dragon's nose, Natalya let out an ear-splitting howl of agony as pain flared through her nose to all the way around her head. She imagined her nose would never ever heal again given the heavy abuse it had been receiving today.

As Natalya contorted with agony, Brevon seized her by the shoulders and threw her across the room once again. The dragon spiralled through the air, crying out loud as she spun and she crashed down heavily onto her left shoulder. There was a slight crack and Natalya winced in pain as her entire left arm began to feel numb. She hadn't dislocated her shoulder but she had landed on it quite painfully. Her left arm wouldn't be very functional now, she needed to have a moment to rest. But she couldn't rest when fighting against such a savage monster like Lord Brevon. Natalya tried to pick herself up but she knew full well that it was pointless to do so. She'd just get knocked down again. She couldn't continue the fight, not in this condition. Her nose was oozing with blood again, her body was aching in all places and she felt physically weak and drained. The fight was over. She had lost. Lord Brevon had won. She had doomed Avalice due to her own stupidity and now she had failed to prevent the coming apocalypse. How could she have been so stupid?! Why didn't she just kill Brevon the moment she shook hands with him?! Why had she let her hatred of Lilac drive her so far as to doom all of Avalice?! The dragon watched helplessly as Lord Brevon advanced towards her, a look of triumph on his face and death from hell below in his eyes.

**"You have fought valiantly, but I'm afraid your best wasn't enough."** the alien crowed, **"Now you fall, just like many others that I've slayed in my time."**

"You…won't…win Brevon…" Natalya grunted, "Lilac…will stop you. She'll…prove her…innocence…and then…" she paused to let out a throaty cough that felt like nails in her throat, "She'll…come and…get you…like she did…last year!"

**"She's welcome to try. She cannot stop me now I have the Dark Stone in my hands." **Brevon sneered, **"This planet will never wake up to another morning…and neither will you!"**

Still grinning triumphantly, the evil alien raised the dagger high above his head and he aimed for Natalya's neck. Another head to slice clean off of another body. This was his idea of preserving his victory and savouring every minute of it. The dragon stared at the ooze-soaked dagger, seeing her life flash in front of her eyes as death was coming for her. She closed her eyes, seeming to accept her fate. But then just as Brevon was about to strike, Natalya curled up into a ball and rocketed straight into Brevon in a trail of sparkles! The Dragon-Boost was a trademark fighting move of any dragon in the world. There wasn't a dragon on Avalice who couldn't or didn't know how to use such a move. Natalya remembered how she and Lilac had used the move plenty of times on each other last year. Now she imagined what it must have felt like for Lilac to be using this move on Brevon. The alien felt the wind being knocked clean out of his lungs as the dragon slammed hard into his solar plexus. He dropped his dagger and found himself being launched like a cannonball across the room and into a wall by Natalya. The move left Brevon heavily winded and unable to get back up for a moment. He wouldn't be down for long and Natalya knew that much was certain. She had to act fast. Straining from her injuries, Natalya steadied herself and then proceeded to take her coat off. She then staggered over towards the control panel of Brevon's ship and pressed a button on it.

A secret compartment opened up and Natalya staggered over to it, forcing herself to stay conscious and ignore her wounds. The secret compartment, which was located near the control panel, was often used for storing things Brevon needed to use for later. The compartment had been used for housing the Dark Stone. The evil purple gem sat in the compartment, glowing evilly and waiting to consume more negative emotions. Natalya dropped her coat around the stone and wrapped it up around the gem. The Dark Stone was now concealed inside a huge leather ball that Natalya kept tightly clenched under her arm. Brevon picked himself up and glared at his mauve-scaled enemy. The woman not only had the nerve to attack him in his own ship but she was actually trying to steal the Dark Stone?! How dare she! Natalya saw Brevon getting up and she made her next move. She had seen which button Brevon had pressed to open the airlock earlier and she remembered which one it was. Brevon was near the airlock now and she thumped on the button. The airlock yawned open and a huge gust of wind wrapped itself around Brevon like a boa constrictor. The alien cried out as he felt himself being pulled towards the open door. He was nearly yanked out of the door by the wind but he saved himself by grabbing hold of the door frame with his hands and wedging his feet into the corners. He fought hard to keep himself from being sucked out of his ship. Natalya just smirked at him and prepared to press the button to close the door. Brevon saw her and his eyes widened in horror. She was planning to crush him between the door and the frame! He couldn't save himself from being sucked out without being crushed by the door so with no other choice, Brevon let go and allowed the wind to take him outside. Natalya pressed the button just as the alien let go of the frame. Brevon cried out as he was whisked away from his ship and sent hurling towards the ground below. Luckily for him though, he was saved by a well-timed arrival from Syntax. She had been watching the fight through the security cameras and had quickly teleported outside to catch Brevon as he fell out of his ship.

As the airlock had closed, Natalya didn't see this. She instead just left the room in a Dragon-Boost and headed for an escape pod. She had been given a tour of the ship earlier and now she remembered where the escape pods where as she ran through the ship. Syntax had arrived back in the torture chamber/laboratory with Brevon in her tendrils just as Natalya had left and the enraged alien barked madly at her. He had noticed Natalya was not here and wanted her found before she could get away.

**"PUT MY CREW ON HIGH-ALERT! SEARCH THE ENTIRE SHIP! DO NOT LET THAT DRAGON ESCAPE! SHE HAS THE DARK STONE! SHE MUST BE CAPTURED IMMEDIATELY!" **the world-conquering warlord barked fiercely.

"Yes sir." Syntax droned, sending out a red-alert signal to the entire ship the moment she had finished her sentence.

The entire ship sounded an alarm, every single room wailing in every corner of the vessel as the alarm blared loudly. The entire crew heard the alarm and sprung into action as Syntax made an announcement over the intercom.

"There is a mauve-coloured dragon in black leather loose on the ship. She is to be captured and brought Lord Brevon immediately."

Everybody understood the message and began searching high and low for Natalya. Even General Serpentine was looking for her, his trademark pistols in hand and itching to blast Natalya to pieces. He slithered through the corridors and kept his keen, sharp eyes open for her. He was not letting her escape Brevon's wrath. His loyal master had been humiliated too many times already, he couldn't be humiliated again.

But unluckily for Brevon's crew, Natalya had already found her destination. As the alarm continued wailing, the dragon ran over to an escape pod and stabbed at a button to open it up. The escape pod opened and Natalya quickly ran inside, sealing herself in the pod and preventing anyone from catching her. She found herself sealed inside the pod and surrounded by controls of many sorts. She didn't know what any of them did but luckily for her, there was a lever labelled with the word "EJECT". It was there so anybody who needed to use the escape pod knew which control ejected the pod. Smiling triumphantly, Natalya pulled the lever and waited for the pod to separate itself from the ship. There was a tense moment as the pod shook and then it rocketed out of its socket and flew away from Brevon's vessel, cruising through the night sky and soaring far above Shang Mu. The pod was on its way towards Jade Creek, just on the outskirts of Shang Tu. The trip would take a few minutes but Natalya wasn't worried, nor in a hurry. She had the Dark Stone in her hands, she had saved Avalice. There was no need to worry about anything. The dragon sat back in her chair and relaxed, putting her hands behind her head and sighing contently.

"Phew...what a lucky escape..." she gasped, "I've saved the world...so I guess...I guess that means I'm a hero now? I sincerely doubt that Lilac will forgive me so quickly though. Oooh I hope she's OK...and that she's proven her innocence. She doesn't deserve to be locked up for my crimes..."

The dragon found herself full of worry. She would hopefully find out what happened to Lilac when the pod landed. And hopefully, she'd understand why she had rebelled against Brevon and was abandoning her evil ambitions of conquest, power and glory...

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Team Lilac had run all the way from Shang Mu to Jade Creek, a good distance away from the red-coloured city and a good place to hideaway from Mayor Zao if he ever decided to come chasing after the group. Terra's stun blast wouldn't keep him knocked out forever and chances were, he was probably awake and ready to hunt down Lilac and throw her in jail. The Jade Creek would keep the heroes well hidden for the time-being. Jade Creek was a beautiful area full of lush Greenland and bamboo tress, waterfalls, lakes and plants of all shapes and sizes. There were plants that could be used to climb up to higher areas of the creek and even giant bubbles that could come out of the lake and allow anybody who got enclosed in one of them to bounce up and down for some fun. Lilac was glad they had come here. The beautiful scenery was the perfect thing for them to sit down and relax in as they got their bearings back together. All of them needed a good rest after what had happened in Shang Mu, especially Carol and Lilac. The wildcat felt exhausted, the effects of her torture finally wearing her down greatly after all she had been through in forcing herself to keep going. The dragon wasn't feeling at her best either, having been corrupted by the Dark Stone and gone on a destructive rampage. It still worried her sick on how much damage she had done and if she had killed anybody in the process. She hoped dearly that nobody had been slain by her hands.<p>

Once everybody had settled down and caught their breath, Lilac spoke.

"OK, we'll be safe here for the time being but we can't sit here forever." she declared, "We've still got my two worst enemies to stop. They still have the Dark Stone. They can easily use it to destroy Avalice as we speak."

"But Lilac, Natalya told us she's not going to destroy Avalice with it!" piped Milla.

"Yeah, she lied to you Milla." snorted Carol, "She straight up told me that she wants Avalice destroyed too, hence why she's working with Lord Creepy-Face."

"Huh, so she has gone off the deep end after all. Good to know…" Lilac scowled, "I'll make sure she pays for her crimes just as much as Brevon does for showing his ugly face here again!"

"I'm still pissed as all hell that he actually managed to get past our defences without us knowing it…" Terra moaned, "We had the whole Chaser fleet defending your planet from his fleet and we actually sent him packing! We thought we'd won but then somehow he sneaks right under our noses and ends up on Avalice! Now he's working with this Natalya woman and he has a doomsday artefact that will see this world incinerated! Given how powerful you were under the stone's control Lilac, I dread to think for a darn minute how powerful Dragon Brevon's gonna be!"

"You have no idea how disturbed by the very image I am…" the heroic dragon muttered grimly.

"The whole image is enough to frighten me to death." Torque added, "We have to find those two and get the Dark Stone back now before they do any more harm with it like they've done to you already!"

Lilac stared at Torque for a moment. Was it her imagination or did Torque seem genuinely concerned for her and what the stone had done to her? She didn't think Torque liked her that much. Maybe he returned the feelings he had for her? Lilac pushed the thought out of her mind for the moment.

"I agree." she said, "We have to stop those maniacs before the world suffers the fate I bestowed upon Shang Mu!"

"Indeed." the Chaser agreed, "And speaking of Shang Mu…"

He suddenly got up onto his feet and pointed sharply at Terra. The motion was so quick and sudden that everybody jumped, including Terra. The female Chaser was surprised to see her beloved commander pointing at her as if she'd done something wrong. There was a look of anger in the commander's eyes too, something that suggested she was in for the high-jump.

"What the hell were you thinking back there?!" Torque snapped, "Do you realize what you've just done by knocking out Mayor Zao?!"

"I stopped the idiot from arresting your girlfriend Torque!" Terra snapped back, "How dare you tell me off for that!"

"It's not that at all Terra!" the Chaser shouted, "Do you realize that by doing this, you're just making Lilac look MORE like a traitor and now Mayor Zao's got more reason than ever to arrest Lilac! You're ruining her reputation further, not fixing it!"

"So I was supposed to be a dumbass and let Lilac get arrested then? Is that what I was supposed to do?!" the female Chaser yelled.

"There were ways we could have gone about it that DIDN'T resort to having to us having to use underhanded tactics like that!" Torque retorted, "We could have made a deal with the mayor that could help us prove her innocence! But instead, you went and did something so reckless that I bet Mayor Zao and all of Shang Mu will never trust Lilac again!"

"But…" Terra stammered.

"No Terra, that's enough!" Torque snapped, "I'm so disappointed with you. I made you my lieutenant because I trusted you to be responsible enough to be my second-in-command. I guess I picked the wrong Chaser. You're lucky I'm not going to demote you Terra but if you ever do something this reckless and senseless again, I am kicking you out of my crew. Is that clear?"

"Y-Y-Yes…Yes Torque…" Terra mumbled sadly.

"Good." Torque muttered, sitting back down and sighing loudly. He didn't enjoy getting mad. It often made his head hurt.

"Whoa…I've never seen Torque be so angry before!" Carol gasped. She had watched the whole argument open-mouthed and wide-eyed, dumbfounded at the enraged display from the Chaser commander. The last time she could remember Torque shouting was when he worried about losing Team Lilac as they prepared to get on-board the Dreadnought.

"I'll say…" mused Lilac, her face as utterly gobsmacked as Carol's, "I didn't know you could blow a gasket like that Torque…"

"I don't often get mad. Anger's a dangerous emotion to lose control of." the Chaser sighed, "But Terra just crossed a line and that was my final straw. I thought she was taught better than this. She really should have known better."

"Maybe…" the dragon murmured, "But don't you think you were a bit too hard on her? I mean, she did have a good reason for it. How can I stop Brevon and Natalya if I'm behind bars?"

"As I said, we could have gone for a more peaceful solution." Torque replied, "I'm just…worried for you now Lilac. Worried that Avalice will begin distrusting you and you'll never salvage your reputation. You've done great things for your world and the galaxy since nobody fears Brevon anymore! You don't deserve this…you really don't…"

Lilac was touched deeply by Torque's words. He really did care about her! She was so thrilled to hear this that she wondered if she would even burst with joy and go wild with excitement. But there was no time for that now. Lilac put her hand on Torque's hand and smiled sweetly at him. Torque stared shyly into her eyes. How beautiful her smile was. Even after all she had been through she still looked beautiful.

"Thank you Torque…thank you so much." Lilac said graciously, "I'm so happy that you care so much about me."

"You're…you're welcome…" Torque stammered, "Anyway, we've gotta get to Shang Tu at this point. I have an idea on how we could stop those two villains. Remember that blue robot you found that made the big dragon you rode on Lilac?"

"Oh yes! I do!" Lilac gasped, "I used it to wipe out Brevon's strongholds in the frozen mountains where his ship had crash landed! The robot was donated to The Magister after the fight! Yes! We could use that to take them out!"

"If they use the Dark Stone then too bad for them, we'll just use our big dragon to take em' out!" Carol exclaimed excitedly.

"Sounds like a good plan." muttered Terra, "I suppose you don't want a screw-up like me on the mission though…"

Everybody suddenly stared over at the female alien in the purple and black armour. Terra had her knees tucked up to her chest and her back turned on everybody. She looked extremely gloomy. Her tough, hot-headed exterior had vanished and she was now a melancholy wreck. The Chaser even looked as if on the verge of tears. Torque crawled over to the solemn girl, feeling that maybe he was a little too hard on her after all. He put a hand softly on Terra's back.

"Say Terra…I may have been mad at you but…"

"Don't bother. You made it clear already Torque. I'm a screw-up. I screwed-up big time!" Terra ranted, refusing to face her best friend, "It's bad enough how it's because of me that Brevon and Natalya even have the Dark Stone but now I've made Lilac look like a criminal! My hot-headedness has made things worse! I'm sorry about all that OK? I'm really sorry that I was so reckless!"

She stared down at her feet as if hoping they could give her some kind of comfort.

"I just…I just thought I was doing the right thing…I want to do the right thing…and I thought I was doing that…but I wasn't." she said sadly, "I want to make the Chasers proud Torque, I really do. But I guess I'm never gonna do that. I'm so sorry that I'm a big screw-up Torque…I really am…"

She then closed her eyes and lowered her head into her arms, clearly preparing to break down into tears. Sensing his friend's despair, Torque put a hand on her shoulder.

"Look Terra, you're not a big screw-up." the commander insisted, "Remember how it was because of you that Brevon's fleet ran away with their tails between their legs? You infiltrated his ship, YOU gave away his plans to us! It's because of you that Brevon hasn't got a fleet with him! And remember how you saved us from being burnt alive in Lilac's treehouse? You're no screw-up Terra. You're just a little impetuous. You've got a flaw, we all have!"

"Even I'm not flawless." Lilac chipped in, "My flaws are the reason Natalya kept outsmarting me throughout the day! But despite my flaws, I know that I'm not a bad person or anything. We all have good things and bad things that make us who we are."

"So please Terra, don't be so sad." Torque said warmly, "You've made a mistake but we can fix it by saving the world. You want to make the Chasers proud? Helping us save Avalice will make them very proud."

Terra smiled graciously at her best friend.

"Well…I'm not sure I deserve this…but thank you." she said, "And I promise, I won't be reckless ever again. I don't ever want to disappoint you like this again Torque."

"It's OK Terra." the Chaser replied, "But it's nice of you to make such a promise."

"Now we've got all the hugs and kisses out of the way, shall we put that plan of Torque's into action?" asked Carol eagerly, "I wanna kick Natalya and Brevon's butts for what they've done to us!"

"Darn straight!" agreed Lilac, "OK everybody let's…"

Then suddenly, a loud whooshing noise filled the air around them, the bamboo trees swaying alarmingly as if startled by the noise that had come from nowhere. Something was heading towards Jade Creek and it was coming in fast. Everybody jumped up onto their feet and watched in amazement as a huge, metal object flew straight over their heads and came down with a crash into a shallow lake just metres away from them. Water splashed everywhere from the impact. The heroes all ran over to the object and stared incredulously at it. It was an escape pod of some kind! Lilac and Carol immediately suspected it had come from Brevon's ship. But why was it here? Who was in it? They soon found the answer for the pod opened up and out staggered a very battered and beaten looking Natalya. She had her coat rolled up under her arm and she was having to steady herself against the pod due to her injuries weakening her and making it harder to stand up. Natalya shook her head, clearly frazzled from the crash, and she stared ahead of herself. She was confronted by angry stares from the heroes before her. Natalya could only smile queasily at Team Lilac.

"Hello…children." she croaked, "How…how fortunate it is I've…run into you!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Looks like things are turning in Lilac's favour. But will she believe Natalya? Will they stop Brevon now the Dark Stone's out of his hands? Will Brevon get the stone back?<strong>_

_**Tune in next time...**_


	11. Chapter 10: War With Brevon

_Chapter 10: War With Brevon_

"Natalya?!"

Lilac, Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela all leapt about a foot in the air at the sight of their hated nemesis. Of all the people who could have emerged from inside the escape pod, Natalya was the last person they had expected. Nevertheless, Lilac was quite pleased to see Natalya standing before them. It meant they didn't have to spend so long looking for her and Brevon. They could just force Natalya to tell them where Brevon was and then unleash all hell on him. But there was something that didn't seem right about the dragon. The two Chasers, Torque and Terra, could see from her body language that she didn't seem to be intently hostile despite being face-to-face with Lilac and her friends. They also noticed the multitude of cuts and bruises on Natalya's body and especially the broken nose and the scar she now had drawn across her face. She looked dreadful. What had happened to her? Lilac seemed to notice this too.

"What the hell are you doing here you witch?!" she screamed angrily, "And…what on Avalice have you done to yourself? You look terrible!"

"Looks like somebody gave her what she deserved." sniffed Carol.

"Ungh…you'll be surprised…but Brevon…did this to me!" Natalya croaked, "I tried…to betray him…but he had the…same idea…and then me and him…got into a fight. I managed…to escape luckily."

"More like UN-luckily." the wildcat grumbled.

"So you and Brevon were plotting to backstab each other. What a shock." Lilac muttered, "I should have known you two wouldn't be BFFs. So…I guess you lied when you told Carol you wanted Avalice destroyed as well as Brevon?"

"Of course I did!" snapped Natalya, "You seriously…thought for a moment…I was being serious?! I could…never destroy this planet! What way…to honour the great…dragon from ancient history…would that be?! A dragon…who wants Avalice destroyed…is no dragon at all."

"I remember how mom and dad used to tell me that…" the teen-dragon murmured briefly.

"OK enough dragon talk, why are you here your Royal Bitchiness?!" demanded Carol angrily.

"To give you this…" the leather-clad woman responded.

She tossed her rolled up leather trench coat to the grass. The coat landed before the heroes and as it landed, it unrolled slightly and revealed what was wrapped up underneath it. An ominous purple glow twinkled in the moonlight. The heroes stared at the thing in horror.

"The Dark Stone!" yelped Milla.

"Get away from that thing Lilac!" cried Torque, "We're not letting it corrupt you again!"

"It's OK Torque, I'm not gonna touch it." the dragon insisted, not moving from her spot, "Though this does beg the question as to why Natalya's brought it here…"

She marched towards her former leader, ignoring the Dark Stone. She stared straight up into Natalya's fearsome red eyes. They didn't seem so fearsome now she was badly hurt but Lilac could swear that her eyes looked a little sad, almost regretful. Had something happened that made her regret what she had done? Lilac didn't trust Natalya's eyes so she decided to play it cautiously for the moment.

"What's the big idea Natalya? Why have you brought the Dark Stone here?!" the Avalician heroine snarled, "Don't you think you've done enough damage to me already?! Shang Mu's scared of me and they want me arrested, I feel horrible for what I've done as that thing and I feel that I may never really recover from this nightmare! Haven't you had enough yet?! WHY CAN'T YOU JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?"

Natalya looked away as if ashamed to look into her favourite student's eyes.

"You're right to distrust me Sash Lilac…" she said solemnly, "And maybe I deserve it…I've been beastly towards you all day…and I regret every minute of it."

"Yeah right, I'm not falling for that old trick…" Lilac growled, "You'll never deceive me again Natalya!"

"I know, that's why I'm NOT trying…to deceive you." Natalya responded, "What I've just said is the truth. I regret my…actions greatly. I've been a terrible…person and a total…monster to the people of this world. And for what? A goal…that I will never achieve."

The last part of the sentence caught Lilac completely by surprise. It was already surprising that Natalya seemed to be a completely different person all of the sudden but she was labelling her goal to conquer Avalice as one she will never achieve? Brevon must have hurt Natalya pretty badly! Still cautious of any possible signs of deception, Lilac narrowed her eyes at her nemesis.

"What…what do you mean?" Lilac asked.

"Lord Brevon had done something…that nobody has ever done before…" the leather-clad woman replied, "He has made me realize…that my goal is nothing but a fantasy. I wanted to take over Avalice so I could…unify the kingdoms and put an end…to the petty confrontations they have. But Brevon pointed out to me…that that's not possible. All I would be doing is creating new conflicts. That…that isn't the world I want…so I am relinquishing my ambitions to conquer Avalice…and am now trying to save it from his menace. Working with him…was a mistake…a mistake that I'm willing to fix. That is why I have given you the Dark Stone. Hide it away. Make sure Brevon never finds it. And…" she paused as she rubbed some of her aching body better, "…and please, for our sake…send him packing. Or better yet, make sure… he NEVER, EVER…comes here again."

The dragon finished by turning her head away sadly and hugging herself, clearly showing deep regret for what she had done. Team Lilac stared at Natalya, utterly dumbfounded at what they had heard. It couldn't be true could it? Natalya had realized her goal was pointless and thus, was willing to give it all up and turn good?! It seemed far too good to be true, especially after what Natalya had done last Christmas and how horrible she had been towards them. Carol in particular seemed extremely adamant to believe Natalya.

"You really think we're that stupid Natalya?" the wildcat growled angrily, "Why can't ya stop lying to us and tell us the truth for once?!"

"No wait Carol, I…I might sound crazy here but…I think she's serious!" Lilac gasped, "Her change in character is sudden that much is certain but still, I think she might well be telling the truth for once!"

"Lilac's right." Torque put in, "The way she was acting and the delivery of her voice was way too genuine to be an act. Not even the best actors can flawlessly deliver an act like this, her presentation was way too real. I think she's being honest too."

"When you're a Chaser, you learn to be good at reading body languages. It's useful during interrogations." Terra chimed in.

"So is Natalya a good guy now?" asked Milla hopefully.

"It…it seems that way…" the lilac-scaled girl murmured, "If so then Lord Brevon has actually done something good for once…"

"I'm still not convinced." Carol muttered, "Natalya's gonna have to do a lot more than that to convince me she's on our side now…"

"I echo your statement young lady." said Miguel grimly, "But we can't be too ungrateful at the most. The woman's given us the Dark Stone so now Brevon no longer has it. That's something to thank her for."

"As weird as it feels to actually be thanking her…" Lela mused, "Either way, at least that monster can't use it against us."

"Yes…yes indeed…" Lilac agreed, "But still…this doesn't automatically redeem her for me. She's damaged me far too much for me to forgive her so quickly." Her voice was bitter yet a little sad as if she felt somewhat guilty for saying those words.

"Perfectly understandable." said Torque, nodding his head slowly, "Though as Miguel says, let's not be ungrateful. We have the stone, we can keep it safe from Brevon. Avalice won't be destroyed."

"That much I am grateful for." the dragon murmured, "And at least I have only one enemy to worry about now."

Lilac turned and looked over at Natalya. She noticed that the woman seemed to be leaning against her escape pod. Was she so hurt that she needed support? Or was she just so depressed that she couldn't really stand properly anymore? The teen-dragon walked cautiously up to Natalya as if stepping straight into a snake pit. As far as she was concerned, Natalya was deadlier than a snake pit. The mauve-dragon didn't turn around. It was almost like she didn't hear her former student coming towards her. Lilac reached out nervously and touched Natalya's arm. The woman ignored her. She didn't deserve the girl's tenderness, she wouldn't return it.

"Natalya?" Lilac asked, "Just know that while I can't forgive you for what you've done to me and my friends…not yet anyway…just know that I'm glad you've come to your senses. Thank you for getting the stone away from that monster Lord Brevon."

"You're welcome Sash Lilac." Natalya muttered, "And I'm not expecting you to forgive me. Perhaps you shouldn't forgive me. I don't deserve anything but scorn and hatred from you. I've been horrible to you Lilac…and all for nothing! Just know…that I'm deeply regretful…and I humbly apologize for everything I've ever done. I mean it…EVERYTHING. Dawn would be so heartbroken if she saw all the terrible things I did now…"

Lilacs ears pricked up at the mentioning of the name "Dawn".

"Dawn? Are you…referring to my mom?" asked Lilac curiously.

"It's a long story my child, I'll explain it some other time." Natalya replied bluntly, "Or perhaps it's best you don't hear the story at all. Either way, we haven't got time to waste. We must stop Lord Brevon before he tears our world apart to find the Dark Stone."

"I agree on that." said Carol bitterly, "So are we going over to Shang Tu to get that blue robot thingy Lilac used last year and then use it on Brevon?"

"Yes." Lilac confirmed with a wink, "But first, we all need a dip in The Magister's healing spa. We need to be in perfect condition. Especially…ahem…Natalya." she added, coughing uneasily at having to include her, "And I need a change of clothes. I can't keep walking around in Miguel's vest, it doesn't look right on me. And Miguel must surely feel awkward walking around with no shirt on."

"I kinda do honestly…" the male hound said with a blush.

"OK so we're gonna tell The Magister everything, heal ourselves and then get into action." Torque deduced, "And the stone?"

"I'm sure The Magister will have a safe place to put it." Lilac suggested, "So let's not waste anymore time. Team, let's get over to Shang Tu!"

The heroes did not wait to be asked twice. They all took to their heels and ran through the bamboo forest with Carol and Milla leading the way. Having escaped the Royal Palace of Shang Tu last year, they knew their way from Jade Creek to the palace easily. Lilac would have taken the lead but she had stopped to look over at Natalya. The dragon had not moved. She was still leaning against the pod feeling sorry for herself. Maybe she was going to cry. The teen-dragon never believed it was possible…but she found herself somewhat pitying Natalya. It must feel so awful to have a goal only to find that said goal was impossible to achieve. What a waste of life that must feel for her former boss.

"You coming?" Lilac asked curiously.

"Why bother?" Natalya sighed, "I've done my part. It's time you do yours."

"But Natalya, if you want to redeem yourself then help us beat Lord Brevon!" Lilac protested, "You deserve a shot at him every bit as much as I do! Fix what you've done and help save our world!"

"No…that is your task my dear." the dragon said solemnly, "You're the Heroine of Avalice. I'm a lowlife crime boss. I do not deserve to take the glory that is rightfully yours."

"Would this "Dawn" person you mentioned earlier want you to sit this one out?" the young girl asked, "Would she be happy if you just sat there and did nothing?"

"She'd be happier to see you save Avalice than me…" Natalya muttered, "You've done great things for this world, you deserve to save it. Me? All I deserve is life in prison for my actions."

"Maybe you do. But just remember Natalya…life is full of second chances." Lilac said softly to her former enemy, "And I believe even somebody like you deserves a second chance. Don't waste it Natalya. Please…come with us and help save Avalice."

Natalya stared over at Lilac as if seeing her beloved student for the first time ever. She smiled weakly at the teenager.

"You really are wise beyond your years child…" she mused, "Very well…I'll come. I suppose it'll be the first good thing I've ever done in my pathetic, wasted life." she added, her voice slightly hard as if trying to beat herself up with just her words.

"I'm glad to hear it." said Lilac, "Looks like Lord Brevon really did open your eyes after all."

"And for the better no less…" the older dragon murmured.

Now they had come to an agreement, the two dragons sped off into the night, heading towards the Royal Palace of Shang Tu. Lilac could almost imagine how surprised The Magister would be to see her and Natalya together. But she was certain that the reasonable ruler would listen and give the crime mistress a chance at redemption...

* * *

><p>Over in Shang Tu, The Magister was gazing thoughtfully out from his balcony to the night sky up above. The shining moon looked absolutely beautiful tonight, looming up above like a beautiful blue pearl. It was a pity for him that Shang Tu itself wasn't as pleasant to look at as it usually was at night. The city was still badly damaged from Natalya's blowing up of the drainage tunnels earlier and there was a lot more work to do. The royal ruler of Shang Tu doubted that they'd get the repairs done in less than a few weeks. It could even take a month for all he knew. At the most, The Magister was relieved that nobody had been killed when the destruction had happened. It had also been a while since he had last seen Lilac and her friends. Were they still over at the Cave of Malevolence and guarding the Dark Stone from the Red Scarf Leader? Had they been killed in their attempts to defend it? The Magister certainly hoped that wasn't the case. And now he was almost ready to go to bed and sleep for the night. He wasn't sure how well he'd be sleeping tonight though. He was interrupted from his relaxing gaze at the stars above by the sound of pounding feet. He knew who was coming into his room without even needing to turn around. He'd heard the heavy footfalls of General Gong enough times to recognize the sound whenever he came lumbering into his chambers. The doors burst open and in ran General Gong. He stopped before his master and saluted him graciously.<p>

"Your excellency!" the general panted, "The dragon girl and her comrades have returned! They've got Natalya too!"

"So it seems they succeeded in capturing her…how fortuitous." The Magister mused, "Send them in general."

The panda nodded and he left the room to fetch in the Avalician heroes. A few minutes later, The Magister turned around to find himself looking at a surprisingly bigger group than he had expected to see. Lilac, Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela were there as expected but they had two more associates with them. There were two aliens, one green and one turquoise and the green one looked a little familiar. Was it the shell-duck man who had accompanied Lilac and friends last year and shown him the fragment of one of Brevon's mechs? He had heard that the shell-duck man was merely a disguise for the alien. The turquoise alien must be his comrade. The Magister's cold eyes fixed on another person who was with the group. As Gong had said, Team Lilac had Natalya the Lead Scarf with them. She looked pretty bad. They must have beaten her up well. And yet the crime boss seemed to be missing her usual display of arrogance, hatred and anger. She looked sad and defeated. What did that mean? Shrugging it off, The Magister looked at Lilac, noticing she was wearing Miguel's vest for some reason. He didn't comment, it was none of his business why Lilac was dressed like that.

"Good evening dragon blood." The Magister said softly.

"And to you Royal Magister." Lilac said, bowing before the firm but fair Avalician, "We have a horde of good news…and some bad news for you."

"I take it the good news has some to do with your capturing of Natalya?" the faceless ruler asked, pointing at the mauve-scaled dragon behind Lilac.

"No, quite the contrary." Lilac replied, "She's here to help us. You see, she's had a change of heart…or at least I hope she has. She doesn't wanna conquer Avalice anymore."

"It's the absolute truth." Natalya added, "I've seen the light and I no longer wish to be the would-be-world-conqueror I once was."

The Magister stared at Lilac as if she had just grown a head on each of her shoulders. Natalya had turned good? Well he hadn't expected that, but he was pleased to hear it. A good Natalya was better than an evil one. The Magister narrowed his eyes uneasily at Lilac.

"I see…" he boomed, his deep voice filling the room, "So what other good news do you have or is it straight onto the bad news?"

"There's more good news." said Lilac, throwing down the rolled up leather coat onto the floor and showing The Magister what was inside, "Natalya managed to retrieve the Dark Stone. We're giving it to you for safe keeping since there's somebody worse than Natalya who wants the Dark Stone."

The Magister stared for a moment at the Dark Stone, unable to believe he was actually looking at it right now. He would make sure it was put in a very safe place now it was in his hands. He looked back at the teen-dragon before him.

"And who else is trying to apprehend this doomsday gem?" he asked.

"Lord Brevon." Lilac responded, her voice heavy and serious.

"He's back Your Royal Facelessness." Carol added, "And he's badder than ever. He wants Avalice destroyed and he wants to use the Dark Stone to do it. He used it on Lilac and caused her to destroy part of Shang Mu, hence why she's not in her usual clothes."

The robed figure with the fancy headwear could only gape at the heroes, unable to believe what he was hearing. Lord Brevon?! Back?! Wanting to destroy Avalice?! After the Dark Stone?! This was worse than he had imagined. Avalice's biggest enemy was after the doomsday gem itself! It was very fortunate that Natalya had gotten the stone away from Brevon indeed. It seemed the crime boss had saved the world for once.

"Lord Brevon…has returned?" he gasped, "This…this is troubling. I never believed we would ever hear of Brevon's cursed name again. How did he hear about the Dark Stone?"

"That was my fault." Natalya admitted guiltily, "I teamed up with him to spite Sash Lilac here but I also intended to kill him, knowing that he was going to destroy Avalice if I didn't do so. I tried manipulating him so he wouldn't suspect a thing. But he had the same idea and thus I was forced to fight him. I was forced to retreat but I got the Dark Stone away from him as you can see. Now we intend to stop Brevon before he tears the world apart looking for the gem. I am truly sorry about what I have done. It was a mistake I wish to rectify."

The Magister nodded, surprised yet thrilled to hear Natalya was willing to redeem herself for what she had done. Looks like today was looking up for him and his people after all.

"It really sounds weird hearing Little Miss Creepypants over there actually apologizing for being a jerk." snorted Carol.

Natalya ignored her former student. It was better that she did.

"Carol, that's quite enough." said Lilac firmly, "Let's not give Natalya a reason to hate us again. Anyway," she added, looking over to The Magister, "Royal Magister, in order to stop Lord Brevon for good, we require first a session in your healing spa. We're all a little pooped from earlier and we need to be in fighting condition to stop him at last. And then we'll need that robot that contained the message about the dragons. We can use that to stop that monster. And finally, I really need some new clothes." she added sheepishly, looking down at the vest that was all she had to cover herself up.

"Your wishes are my command Lilac." The Magister said kindly, "General, see to it that our esteemed guests are given a moment in the healing spa. I'll send Neera to obtain some new clothes for Lilac and I shall get the robot they require for their mission."

"This way everyone." said Gong briskly, "Even you…Natalya." he added, his voice as hard as steel as he set his eyes open the formerly evil dragon.

"If you want me to apologize for knocking you out earlier general then I suggest you drop that tone." Natalya muttered.

"Say, when we get to the healing spa, can Natalya wait until we're all done?" asked Carol, "I'm not sharing a bath with her."

"I don't want to either!" cried Milla, "She maybe good now but she still scares me."

"We girls will go in first." Lilac announced, motioning to herself, Carol, Milla, Lela and Terra, "Then Torque and Miguel can have their turn and then Natalya can bathe on her own, if she's OK with that that is."

"Fine by me." said Natalya gloomily, "I didn't think any of you would want to share a spa bath with me…"

Lilac looked back at Natalya, almost feeling sorry for her. She had done a really nice thing by keeping the Dark Stone away from Brevon and yet everybody was still acting as if she was a time-bomb waiting to go off. How long would it be before the poor woman got any respect or any forgiveness? Lilac herself wasn't sure how long it would take her to forgive Natalya for anything. Maybe she shouldn't do? But that would be cruel. She was many things but spiteful was not one of them. She should give Natalya a chance after all of this was over. Maybe it would make her former enemy feel better and be happier to be on the good side. Lilac pushed the thoughts aside as Gong led everybody away to the healing spa. Natalya wasn't important now. Lord Brevon was and she had to be focused on him and nothing more. She could hardly wait to make Brevon pay for causing her to crack and be corrupted by the Dark Stone. And hopefully…Mayor Zao would realize she was innocent and forgive her for what she had done in Shang Mu…

* * *

><p>A few moments later, Lilac, Carol, Milla, Lela and Terra had stripped off all their clothes and stepped into the luxurious spa bath that was known as the healing spa. The spa was somewhat magical in nature in how stepping into the water immediately healed all physical and visible injuries with just a few moments soaking in the steaming, warm water. Nobody really knew how The Magister obtained such a magical bath and how it worked. All they knew was it was definitely a miracle of health that only few people ever got the pleasure of stepping into. Lilac lay back and closed her eyes, feeling relaxed for the first time in a long time as she soaked up the lovely warm water. If she didn't have a mission to do after this session, she'd happily lie there all night if she could. Carol lay back and closed her eyes too, already feeling the effects of Brevon's earlier torture on her disappearing with every minute that passed. She could imagine how Lilac must have felt when she was in this bath after Brevon tortured her last year. The wildcat was enjoying the luxury of lying in the soothingly warm water and having a moment to relax after what had happened. She had exhausted her body greatly by forcing herself to chase after Lilac earlier and now she was lying in the spa bath and relaxing, she could feel waves of relief sweeping over her. Milla sat close to her mother, enjoying how warm the water felt. It was like having a soothing bath back at home for her. Terra was sitting by herself, a mixture of contention and fascination on her face. She was fascinated by how simply being in this spa bath could heal any injuries sustained in battle. She was already feeling much better just sitting in the water. Avalice truly was a fascinating planet. No wonder her best friend was so keen to protect it from Brevon earlier.<p>

"You guys sure live on an amazing world." Terra said in amazement, "You have a bath that heals people! That's amazing! How does it do that?!"

"We don't know." said Lilac with a shrug, "The Magister got it somehow and he never tells how it heals people or where he got it from. I don't think even HE knows. Either way, it definitely is a miracle bath. It's healed me well the last two times I used it and it's doing me good again."

"You know Lilac, if this is gonna happen after every big adventure you have why don't you just live with The Magister full time so you can use it at your leisure?" Carol snickered.

"Oh very funny." the dragon scoffed, smiling cheekily at her best friend, "Though you do bring up the point of what we're gonna do for living space now my house is gone..."

"Maybe you could live with me and Torque?" Terra suggested, "Join the Chasers and help us defeat intergalactic evil. I'm sure you'd love that."

"Sorry but I'm gonna decline your offer." said Lilac softly, "My place is here. I can't leave Avalice. I love it too much to leave it."

"Yeah, we're gonna stay here if you don't mind." added Carol.

"Fair enough." The Chaser said casually, "So Lilac...um...this is the second time you're going to be fighting Lord Brevon right?"

"It is." Lilac said, her face full of concern, "And I'm quite nervous. Can I beat him again? Will I...survive? Will any of us survive? Will he kill us all?"

"I hope he doesn't turn me into a monster again!" squeaked Milla, "It was so horrible when he did that to me! I don't want it to happen again!"

"Oh baby, it won't happen again." said Lela softly, embracing her worried daughter, "We'll remain close together on the mission and we won't let that fiend get near you."

"Me in particular." added Lilac, "He won't lay a finger on you Milla, I promise you."

"Thanks mommy. Thanks Lilac." the dog replied graciously.

"Welcome honey." the mother dog said sweetly, "I will say, I hope me and Miguel and land a few punches on him for turning our baby girl into a monster...it makes me sick just thinking about it!"

"At least you weren't there to see it." Lilac muttered, "I watched her transform in front of my eyes...and I had to fight her. Carol did too. We were both so scared...we thought she was gonna die after we stopped her. I never let a day pass without being thankful she survived."

"Otherwise you and Mr. Basset would never have reunited with her last Christmas." added Carol, looking over at the two dogs.

"I know...what a dreadful thought..." Lela said, shuddering, "But enough about that. I'm a little curious about something Lilac dear."

"Really? What is it?" the teen-dragon asked.

"Do...do you think that Natalya really has turned good sweetheart?" the hound asked.

The dragon gaped at Lela, surprise to receive such a question. It was definitely an interesting one and as Lilac turned the question over in her head, she found the perfect answer.

"If I'm to be honest, I really do Mrs. Basset." the draconian heroine replied, "I mean I don't necessarily trust her fully and I still can't forgive her for what she's done yet but I honestly do think she has turned over a new leaf. As Torque and Terra pointed out, the way she's acting is too convincing to be a fake. She seems genuinely guilty over what she's done and regretful that her life's ambition has driven her so badly that she failed to realize that it's all for nothing. She even told me she thinks she deserves punishment for her actions. The Natalya I know would NEVER say that. Whatever it is that Lord Brevon said to her...it's truly broken her."

"I still think it's an act. She's probably trying to manipulate us into beating Brevon for her and then once Brevon's defeated, she'll use the Dark Stone and kill us all." Carol spat, "She can't fool me."

"Oh knock it off Carol!" Lilac snapped, "Torque and Terra made it very clear already that she's not putting up an act! Natalya's many things but she's no actor. She's always blunt, brutally honest and straight to the point. It's highly unlikely that she's putting up an act, especially since she seems pretty depressed upon realizing her life's ambitions are nothing but a fantasy she's dwelling in. She even seemed a little sad that we don't wanna share this bath with her. So as suspicious as you are Carol, I don't think you should keep being mean to Natalya. She might end up turning on us again if we keep being hostile to her. If she's turning good than we want her to stay good."

"I want Natalya to be good!" piped Milla, "It's a lot better than her being mean and nasty!"

"I definitely agree on that dearie." said Lela, "After the way she treated me and Miguel, it would be nice to see her make up for her evil actions."

You know...I think I agree too." the wildcat murmured, "I definitely would prefer Natalya as a good dragon than an evil one. Maybe I shouldn't be so suspicious of her..."

"We understand why you feel that way buddy." said Lilac softly, "As I said, I don't fully trust Natalya yet. But I'm gonna play it by ear with her and see how she goes. If she even remotely shows any signs of defecting back to her evil deeds, I'll deck her. I'm just cautiously letting her join us at the most since we need all the help we can get against Brevon. Though I will say...as weird as it is for me to say this...but I kinda feel sorry for Natalya."

The girls stared at Lilac in amazement.

"You...feel...sorry...for her?" Carol said slowly, "Um...why? After the way she treated you, why would you feel sorry for her?"

"Well...the reason is that Natalya's realized her desire to conquer Avalice won't get her the world she wants." the dragon explained, "So in a way...she must be feeling as if her life's been nothing but a lie. How horrible must it feel to think your life's been wasted trying to achieve something you can never achieve? I remember how she considers herself special because she's a dragon. Well...how special must she feel now she's a dragon with no purpose anymore? Those are really sad things to think about and because of this...I really do feel sorry for Natalya. I just hope that she can find a new purpose and not be sad anymore."

Carol, Milla, Lela and Terra all took in Lilac's testimony and turned the words over and over in their heads. Despite not really knowing Natalya, the female Chaser had to admit that Lilac had some good points. The wildcat and dogs, despite still being unsure about Natalya, thought that Lilac's reasons for pitying her former nemesis were reasonable enough. One of the most terrifying things in life is the lack of purpose. A lack of purpose often gave people no motivations to live. What would the point of living be if you didn't have a purpose that gave you a reason to live? Despite what Natalya had done to them, Carol, Milla and Lela found themselves also beginning to feel sorry for the leather-clad dragon. The tomboy feline looked over at her draconian best friend.

"You know…I think you're absolutely right Lilac." Carol said softly, "I guess you have every right to feel sorry for her. If I was in her shoes, I don't think I'd feel very happy thinking my life's got no purpose anymore since my original purpose was nothing but an impossible task."

"I hope she finds a new purpose now she's good." said Milla, "Then she can be happy and have a nice, happy life like we do!"

"That would be very nice for her, as well as us." Lilac agreed, "We won't have to worry about her wanting us dead anymore and she can do good things for Avalice. I wouldn't mind if that became her new purpose, to protect Avalice from harm. She'd be really good at that."

"That I definitely agree on." said Lela, "Given her savage might, I doubt anybody would cause problems for Avalice ever again."

"Say, if Natalya's on our side now then…what's gonna become of the Red Scarves?" Carol asked curiously.

"She could well disband the group." Lilac shrugged, "She'll probably tell everybody where they are and get them thrown back in prison where they belong. I can't imagine Spade being too thrilled at this but when it comes to that jerk, I don't give a darn."

"Me neither." the wildcat muttered, "Murdering little toe-rag, daring to kidnap me and get me tortured by Brevon…"

As she brought up that fact, the green-furred feline suddenly noticed something. The injuries she had sustained from the torture had all disappeared! She felt better and was now ready for battle! Carol flexed her arms enthusiastically, pleased to feel back at full strength again.

"Hey! I feel all better now!" she cried out loud, "My injuries are all healed up!"

"I feel better too!" piped Milla.

"That's the healing spa for you, it's great at healing injuries and restoring people's strength." Lilac said brightly, "OK girls, let's give Torque and Miguel their turn in the spa and then we can prepare ourselves for battle."

"A battle that will hopefully see Lord Brevon stopped for good…" growled Terra, clenching her fists angrily.

The dragon nodded, understanding the Chaser's anger. Brevon was quite possibly the only thing in the galaxy she hated more than anyone else. He had caused chaos on her world last year and was here to cause trouble some more this year. He had to be stopped otherwise Avalice would never sleep peacefully again. Climbing out of the bath and drying herself off, Lilac thought about only one thing…Brevon's defeat. She would stop the maniacal alien even if it killed her…

* * *

><p>A while later, everybody had had a dip in the healing spa and were now preparing to fight against Lord Brevon at last. Even Natalya, despite still looking a little glum, was ready for battle and could hardly wait to have another shot at Lord Brevon. And this time, she would win and send him packing for good now she was with her four former students and three others to make it harder for Brevon. She remembered how Lilac had often talked, maybe even boasted about beating Lord Brevon last year. She had become legendary for that. It would give her great pleasure to see her favourite student fighting against Brevon. As for Lilac herself, she had been given new clothes as requested earlier. Neera Li had given her a new blue vest, some new blue shorts, blue boots, blue gloves and a blue belt with gold buckle. They were the exact same clothes she always wore. Shang Tu sold plenty of clothes like that, hence why Neera Li had no trouble finding them for the dragon girl. Now Lilac felt as if the incident with the Dark Stone had never happened and Miguel was now free to have his vest back.<p>

The heroes and former villainess all stood outside the Royal Palace, wondering how they were going to find Brevon's ship. They had the blue Syntax-lookalike robot floating beside them now, the robot waiting to use its mysterious but potent power. It made Terra feel uncomfortable to think that they had a lookalike to Syntax on their side and had wondered where Lilac had found it. The dragon had explained and had also told her the robot was not one of Brevon's machines. To prove it, she had asked it about Lord Brevon only to receive the response she had received when she had found it last year.

"That name does not exist in our database."

Upon hearing this, Terra had relaxed and no longer feared the robot. Torque on the other hand could hardly wait to see Lilac use it on Brevon. The dragon that the robot had made had been enough to destroy many of his forces up in the snowy glaciers. It would easily take out Brevon's ship. As for Brevon's ship, Torque had informed everybody that it had powerful blasters that could easily level a city if Brevon wanted to and the ship would have some kind of shield to protect it from heavy fire. The plan was that they were going to infiltrate the ship and lower the shields and then they would use the blue Syntax-like robot to become a giant dragon and destroy it with Brevon hopefully still inside it. It had been agreed that Brevon had to die or at least be captured in order for the galaxy to be safe at last. Despite having lines she didn't cross, Lilac was not going to argue with that. She would happily have Brevon killed if it meant she would never see him again.

"So now we have our plan ready, we need to find Brevon's ship." Torque declared.

"Do you have any idea where it is Natalya?" asked Lilac curiously, looking over at the solemn looking dragon.

"We were just over the mountains of Shang Mu when I ejected from that hideous vessel." explained Natalya, "The pod took me all the way over to Jade Creek as you know. He'll likely come this way looking for me."

"So we could either go over to Jade Creek and see if he's there observing the crashed escape pod or we could wait for him to come over here and then we attack." suggested Terra.

"But won't Brevon just cause damage to Shang Tu?" asked Miguel worriedly, "I mean, the city's had enough grief as it is given…ahem…what our former enemy did to it." he glanced briefly over at Natalya, "We can't let any more damage be inflicted on this city."

"Daddy's right." said Milla, "We must have the battle away from this place."

"Then let's hope Brevon's at Jade Creek." declared Lilac, "Nobody lives in that place, we'll have no causalities and any damage done to the forest can be replaced with new trees. Let's go team!"

Nobody waited to be told twice. With Lilac in the lead, the team of heroes all ran off towards the outskirts of the city, leaving the Royal Palace behind as The Magister watched them leave with serious but hopeful eyes. He prayed to the ancient dragon that had blessed the world of Avalice that the heroes would all return safely and with good news.

A few minutes later, the heroes had left the city of Shang Tu behind and were running through a field of grass that led the way to Jade Creek. The clouds in the night sky were heavy with water and lightening flashed, streaking through the sky and illuminating the whole scenery around them. A clap of thunder followed. It was going to rain. Nobody cared though. Brevon had to be stopped no matter what the weather was like. But as they were halfway towards Jade Creek, Lilac screeched to a halt and stared up into the black sky. There was something coming towards them. That something was Lord Brevon's ship. It loomed up in the sky like some evil creature waiting to swoop down and swallow everybody up. They had found their target. Now the plan could commence. Lilac grabbed onto the blue robot and allowed it to carry her up towards Brevon's ship whereas Milla carried Carol and Lela carried Miguel up after her. Torque and Terra grabbed Natalya by each hand and flew her up together towards the evil vessel above. Natalya glared at their target, repulsed that she had to set foot near it again. But this would be the last time. She wouldn't see that ship again after they had finished with Lord Brevon.

Once everybody had flown up onto the ship, they were greeted by the expected company. Brevon himself was standing top of the vessel, his huge cape blowing out behind him like a waving flag. Serpentine and Syntax were with him, both piloting mechs as usual. Serpentine was in the mech he had used to fight Terra earlier, only the damages had since been repaired. Syntax was in a silver mech that was designed like a giant, mechanical crab with a hovering system underneath and two gigantic claws that concealed lasers. Brevon surprisingly enough wasn't in a mech. He seemed so confident that he could win that he clearly wanted to get his own hands dirty. The alien smirked at his resistance. They were truly a fool-hardy bunch to dare take him on so abruptly. Lilac jumped down onto the ship and took up a battle ready stance. Her eyes radiated hatred and her body was rigid with anger. She had never been so angry to be staring face to face with the alien before. Not even in their last battle.

"BREVON!" Lilac bellowed angrily.

**"So surprised that we're meeting face-to-face again so soon are you little one?" **the alien crowed, **"I'm not…so how did it feel destroying a city that you once swore to protect along with the rest of this tainted world?"**

"It felt horrible and now because of you, Shang Mu thinks I'm a traitor!" snapped Lilac, "You teamed up with Natalya to make my life miserable and made me vulnerable to the Dark Stone's power! I swear on the blood of all Avalicians everywhere that you will never live to ruin another life again Brevon! You are dead!"

**"So you thought when you challenged me last year." **snorted Brevon, **"Now instead of wasting my time, how about you just hand over the Dark Stone and allow me to continue with my plans? Given the other dragon's treachery earlier, I assume she's hidden it somewhere."**

"You're mad if you think I'm going to do that gruesome!" the dragon retorted, "I will never tell you where the Dark Stone is! All you're getting is a beating from all of us! I'm giving you one chance Brevon. Get out of our planet and never come back! If you do so, I might let you live!"

**"I'm not one to follow the orders of those who ruin my reputation and make me a laughing stock in front of the whole galaxy." **the alien snarled, **"You want me out of Avalice? Then face me!"**

He drew out his dagger and positioned himself in a battle-ready stance.

**"Your friends can have fun with Serpentine and Syntax if they want. But you. You're MINE!" **Brevon declared.

"And you're mine too so we're even!" snarled Lilac, "Team, keep Brevon's minions busy, I'll take care of the lord himself!"

"Kick his ass for us Little Miss Heropants!" cried Carol, cracking her knuckles eagerly.

"We'll fight strong and hard!" Milla promised, "We'll take care of his sidekicks!"

"If you need help, just give us a call." said Torque, "And be careful Lilac. I…I don't want to lose you."

"I beat him before, I'll do it again." boasted Lilac, "Alright team, ATTACK!" she screeched at the top of her voice.

The moment her sentence had concluded, lightening flashed and a clap of thunder boomed all around in the sky above. And then it started to rain. Heavy drops of rain hammered down onto the ground below, drenching it instantly and dampening the grasslands. Everybody sans Serpentine was soaked instantly by the heavy rain. Serpentine was nice and dry inside his mech. Nobody seemed to care that it was raining. Rain or no rain, the battle had to end now. Lilac curled up into a ball and dragon-boosted towards Brevon in a snarling rage. Brevon lunged towards Lilac, arm drawn back and dagger in hand; ready to slice her in half. Lilac hit Brevon before he could make a cut, the alien hurling backwards across his ship and towards the engines at the back. Brevon managed to save himself from falling off the ship and he lunged towards his reptilian nemesis again. Lilac poised herself, waiting to receive his attack. She jumped up into the air to dodge Brevon's slash but the alien had tricked her. He wasn't making an attempt to slash her, he had instead drawn out a laser gun and lunged towards her. Now Lilac was airborne, was vulnerable to an attack from her alien enemy and Brevon took advantage of it. He shot Lilac in the stomach and knocked her back down onto her back. The dragon cringed, feeling the hot laser blast on her stomach. Brevon came thundering towards the girl again, his footsteps as loud as the booming thunder that tail-ended yet another streak of lightening.

Lilac jumped up onto her feet, pushed down on them and then kicked upwards. She had flicked rainwater into Brevon's eyes and now he was momentarily blinded, the dragon unleashed a Dragon Cyclone attack on the monstrous warlord. She spun around like a tornado, walloping Brevon with her tendrils. The alien tried to shield himself but Lilac's attack was too heavy hitting. Lilac then finished her attack with a roundhouse kick to the face. Brevon was thrown aside by the attack and he hit his arm as he crashed down. Ignoring the pain in his arm, he picked himself up and shielded himself with his arms held out in an X shape as Lilac unleashed another Dragon Cyclone. Her tendrils hit the armour gauntlets on his lower arms, doing no damage to the alien himself. Brevon then swiped his arms out, smacking Lilac and throwing her down onto her back. Lilac tried to pick herself up but the alien grabbed her and hoisted her up off the floor and to his eye line. He drew his arm back and slugged Lilac as hard as he could in the stomach. It felt good to be slugging the little brat. How dare she make a fool out of him! She was finally going to pay for her actions and it seemed he wouldn't need the Dark Stone after all. The dragon coughed heavily from the punch. Brevon didn't stop there though. He slugged her again, his punch as solid as rock, and then he slugged her a third time. Then he tossed Lilac up into the air and waited for her to come back down. The dragon screamed as he plummeted back down towards the ship. Brevon spun around on his heel, timing Lilac's descent perfectly, and he drove a powerful roundhouse kick into the dragon's body, throwing her far across the ship and nearly sending her falling off. The teen-heroine just managed to save herself from falling off as the extra-terrestrial villain came marching towards her. Lilac picked herself up and stood her ground. Water trickled down her body as rain pitter-pattered all over her.

"Knock me down all you want freak, I'll never give in!" she declared, "You'll never stop the dragon you've unleashed!"

**"So you've said before…" **purred Brevon, **"But will it be worth it? Will stopping me really be that worth it child? You forget, the damage has been done. You've ended up damaging one of your planet's kingdoms and I'm pretty sure you have a death toll on your hands. Does the one you call Zao believe you're innocent? Will he get over what you've done when you kill me? Or will he fear you and thus, you end up living your life as a subject of fear. So why waste your time trying to stop me? It won't fix anything."**

"It'll fix everything!" the dragon retorted, "Natalya's on our side now so she'll admit the truth and then Shang Mu won't fear me anymore! And with you gone, Avalice will hail me as a hero once again! Your damages will not be permanent!"

**"I bet it won't be as simple as that…" **sneered Brevon, drawing out his trademark dagger and preparing to fight again.

Roaring savagely, Brevon charged at Lilac like a poisoned arrow. The dragon reacted quickly and leapt over him in a neat rainbow arch as he attempted to slice her in two. She landed behind Brevon and roundhouse kicked him in the back, knocking Brevon off his feet and onto his stomach. Lilac then stomped down on his back as viciously as she could. The alien cried out but his body armour protected him from most of the impact. He then turned onto one elbow and used his other elbow to knock the dragon off of him. He jumped back up onto his feet and just as his female opponent got back up, he slashed her across the face with his dagger. Lilac screamed in agony, clutching her face and wincing tensely. Brevon took the perfect moment to slash her across the arm while she was clutching her face. Lilac screamed again, clutching her arm as the pouring rain trickled into the fresh cut and made it sting. Brevon then positioned himself for a slash attack that would take Lilac's head off. That head of hers would make a wonderful trophy. He would hold it out to show those who dared to resist him what had become of the one who had inspired them to take action against him. He'd have no more resistance after they saw the dragon's head.

But Lilac was just quick enough to throw herself onto her side, leaving the evil warlord to slice through empty air. Lilac picked herself up and kicked the dagger out of Brevon's hand, sending it flying into the air. The alien jumped up to grab it but Lilac pushed him back and jumped up for it. She grabbed it by the handle and threw it straight at Brevon's heart. The alien blocked the attack by holding his arm up and letting the dagger ping off of his arm gauntlet. But that attack wasn't entirely meant to kill him, it was meant to distract him. Lilac activated another Dragon Boost and rocketed straight into Brevon's torso. The alien grunted as the dragon slammed into him and sent him hurling through the air. He crashed onto the ship's wing and fought hard to keep himself from falling off. The rain had made the surface slippery and he had to fight very hard to keep himself from sliding off. He just managed to save himself and he stood back up just as Lilac came charging towards him. Frowning in annoyance, Brevon drew his arm back and uppercut Lilac in the chin just as she came within reach. Lilac's head jerked backwards and her whole body was whisked up into the air. Spasms of pain jolted through her back from the attack. She then came down heavily onto her stomach, grunting loudly as she hit the heavy metal surface.

Brevon smirked and then came charging towards her again. He jumped up into the air and came hurling towards Lilac like a meteor. He crashed down before her and slammed a fist straight down into her face. To Lilac, it was like being hit by a rock. Brevon then grabbed the dragon by the face and slammed her down onto the floor as hard as he could. It was like he was trying to break every bone in Lilac's body by slamming them out of her. But just as he raised Lilac up for another slam, the dragon jabbed him in the collarbone with two fingers. The move numbed Brevon's arm long enough for him to let go of the dragon. Lilac dropped down and she roundhouse punched Brevon in the face. As Brevon keeled sideways, the reptilian heroine kicked him in the stomach, causing him to double over and leave him vulnerable for a blow to the head. Lilac clasped both fists together and slammed them down on Brevon's head. The alien was momentarily distorted from the attack and Lilac took advantage of this. She grabbed the ridiculously large unibrow that was perched between Brevon's eyes and yanked on it. The alien roared in a mixture of rage and pain. Nobody ever pulled his unibrow and lived! He kicked Lilac in the legs, forcing her to let go and tripping her up. Just before she could stand back up, the alien delivered a crippling kick to the face that threw Lilac into the air and onto her side. Her mouth trickled with blood and she spat some out onto the rain soaked surface of the ship. She felt like her face was broken and she felt it just to make sure it wasn't. It was intact, amazingly enough. Lilac forced herself back onto her feet only to then be knocked over again by a terrific punch from Brevon. The dragon was thrown down on her side but she wasn't down for long. Forcing herself back up, she came spiralling towards her enemy again with another Dragon Cyclone attack.

Meanwhile, the rest of Lilac's team were doing well in their fight against Serpentine and Syntax. Serpentine had of course, chosen to fight the two Chasers while Carol, the hounds and Natalya fought against Syntax. Serpentine's huge yellow mech lumbered towards Torque and Terra as they took flight and began shooting at him. The shots hit home and Serpentine was forced to block the attacks with his mech's arms. Terra took advantage of this and flew around behind the enormous machine. She aimed the guns at the back of the mech's legs and fired at them. The shots slammed into the legs and caused Serpentine to trip up. The snake general cried out in surprise as he found himself falling over. Torque gave Terra the thumbs up and he fired at the legs, hoping to break them clean off. Serpentine picked himself up but with Terra and Torque both shooting at his mech's legs, he wasn't up for long. The legs were broken away and he was brought crashing down once again. Serpentine tried to get back up but then the two Chasers landed on the mech's torso section and they pointed their guns straight at him. The cockpit window wouldn't survive heavy bombardment from their guns, he had to get them away. But before he could try anything, Torque and Terra both started firing at the cockpit window. The general couldn't see a thing with the laser fire blinding him and the cockpit window began cracking under the heavy onslaught it was being dealt with. Then the cockpit window smashed to pieces and Serpentine now found himself vulnerable and getting soaked by the rain. The two Chasers kept their guns pointed at him, preparing to shoot him if he tried anything foolish.

"I'd stay there if I were you." said Torque coldly, "Lest we be forced to shoot you."

"Believe me, when Torque makes a threat, he makes a threat." warned Terra, "He's not as meek as he may look."

Serpentine did as he was told and remained still. He wasn't defeated yet. Syntax could save him.

As for Syntax, she opened up her crab claws and fired lasers at her opponents. Milla summoned a shield in front of her and used them to deflect the shots. The laser blasts hit the shields and came hurling back towards Syntax. The robot piloting the crab mech commanded the mech to jump up and avoid the blasts. But Milla had angled her shield for some of the blasts so not all of them came straight back towards her. The blasts that had been sent flying upwards ended up hitting Syntax as she jumped up. The blasts were powerful and heavy hitting, throwing her back down onto the surface of the ship. Then Milla summoned a block above her head and threw it at the face of the mech, exactly where Syntax was positioned. The block hit the robot, making the mech step backwards a little. Carol and Natalya then came charging towards Syntax and they unlashed a raid round of fisticuffs on the robot's chassis. It felt weird for Carol to actually be working with Natalya but she didn't dare to complain. She was thankful the woman was helping her and her friends instead of trying to kill them for once. The wildcat and dragon hammered the robot servant mercilessly but Syntax managed to get them away by raising her crab claws and preparing to slam them on top of the two. If she had succeeded in hitting them, she would have crushed them. As is, Natalya and Carol had jumped back to avoid the blow, leaving the silver crab mech to slam on empty space.

Syntax aimed the claws at the cat and dragon and they launched straight off of the wrist sections like missiles, heading towards them and preparing to slice them in half. Carol and Natalya leapt over the claws and charged back towards Syntax. The claws hurled towards Milla but the dog destroyed them by summoning a rectangular shield to her hands and then firing an energy blast at them. Syntax was defenceless now. She couldn't protect herself as wildcat and dragon began attacking her again mercilessly. Miguel and Lela ran forward and began kicking at Syntax's "face" section. The robot tried desperately to protect herself from the attacking Avalicians but they were utterly relentless. She couldn't stop them as they clawed and kicked at her. And then Milla came in to finish the job, running towards Syntax with another rectangular shield in front of her. The Avalicians made way for her as Milla ran forwards and fired another energy beam, hitting Syntax square on and destroying her instantly. The robot was reduced to scrap metal, a bent and buckled shell that had once been a working machine. The crab mech was useless without its pilot now. Milla whooped with joy, pleased that she had destroyed Syntax.

"Yay! We beat that robot!" she cried out excitedly.

"We sure did!" cried Carol, "We rock! Even you Natalya!" she added, "You did a good job out there."

"As surprising as it is to receive thanks from you Carol Tea…I appreciate it." the dragon said kindly, "It felt…good to be fighting to protect Avalice I must admit."

"That's good to hear." said Miguel brightly, "I bet Brevon really regrets causing you to turn on him now."

"I intend to make sure he does regret it…" Natalya muttered.

Then suddenly, Natalya jumped as something big and heavy came crashing down behind her. It was Brevon. Lilac had knocked him down onto his back again with a Dragon Cyclone attack. Everybody stared at Brevon and then they watched as Lilac came hurling towards him like a bowling ball. The alien warlord didn't have time to defend himself as he was stricken by yet another Dragon Boost attack. The attack sent him hurling past Syntax and Serpentine and he crashed down heavily onto his back. He picked himself up and found himself being glowered at by the whole of Team Lilac. To his amazement, Syntax had been destroyed and Serpentine was being held at gunpoint. Everything was going wrong for him! He was going to be humiliated by Avalice again! Why could he never win on this stupid world?! But it wasn't over yet. He could still win somehow. Now if he could just get a hostage…

Lilac stepped forward and she pointed sharply at Brevon, rain dripping off her finger.

"It's over freak!" she declared, "We've won! Your cronies are beat and I've given you a good beating! You haven't a hope of winning!"

**"Isn't it usually considered illogical to claim victory before you actually win?" **the alien sneered.

Then suddenly, moving at a speed that defied all belief, Brevon rocketed towards the heroes with his arms stretched out in front of him. He was like a monster from a nightmare, rushing out to grab whatever stood in his way. He snatched up Milla as he passed her and charged down towards his dagger, which was still lying on the floor just ahead of him. Lilac gasped in horror as Brevon scooped up the dagger and held it at Milla's throat. The dog whimpered in terror, trying desperately to get away. Bad memories came back to her, memories of when Brevon had turned her into a monster and used her against Lilac and Carol last year. It could well be happening again. Miguel and Lela let out horrified gasps at the sight of their daughter being held at blade point by Brevon. It made their hearts ache to see their daughter looking so scared. Milla was in tears, the rain mixing in with them as they trickled down her face.

"M-mommy! D-daddy! L-Lilac, C-Carol! H-help me!" she whimpered.

"MILLA!" Miguel cried out.

"MY BABY!" Lela shrieked.

"Let her go right this minute Brevon!" snarled Lilac.

**"Oh no, I think you fail to grasp the situation little girl…" **Brevon sneered, drawing the dagger closer to the terrified puppy's throat, **"You see, if you make any wrong moves, this little brat's head will be separated from her body. There is only one way you can save her pathetic little life. Tell me where the Dark Stone is. Otherwise this child will end up a few inches shorter!"**

He slowly drew the dagger across Milla's throat, leaving a thin cut across it. The dog howled in terror and pain. The cut wasn't bad enough to start bleeding but Lilac knew Brevon wouldn't stop there. He would do it some more until eventually; Milla's head was separated from her shoulders. The dragon found herself in utter torment. She couldn't let Brevon have the Dark Stone! But she couldn't let Milla die either…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Damn...just when things were looking up too...how will our heroes get out of this one? Find out next time in Chapter 11...<strong>_


	12. Chapter 11: Dragon Fight

_Chapter 11: Dragon Fight_

**"Time is ticking animals…will you tell me where the Dark Stone is or will you let this little canine creature die at my hands?" **growled Brevon angrily, **"Make your choice, I won't ask you again!"**

He readied his deadly dagger, preparing to draw it across his captive's throat once again. Milla just squirmed, already dreading the sharp metal coming across her neck and trying desperately to get away. The rain poured down ever harder as if trying to weigh down the Avalicians and Chasers that stood watching the alien warlord. Lilac and her friends could do nothing more than stare helplessly at Brevon, letting the rain trickle down their bodies as they weighed up their options. On the one hand, the world was more important than one Avalician and they could easily just refuse to give the Dark Stone up. No way was Brevon getting the satisfaction of destroying Avalice with the Dark Stone. But on the other hand could they possibly be so cruel as to let Milla, an innocent little kid, die at the hands of a madman like Brevon? No. A child like Milla did not deserve to have her life sacrificed so needlessly while she had plenty of life ahead of her. They could have another chance at saving Avalice from the Dark Stone's power but they couldn't get another Milla.

Lilac glanced over at her friends as if wondering if she could read their minds. The dragon was in torment, wishing she could help her friend but with Brevon holding her so tightly to his body and holding his dagger so close to her neck, there was no chance of saving her. Lilac could run fast but Brevon would likely slit the puppy's throat before she even took off. It was hopeless. There was no saving Milla without risking her life. The draconian teenager looked over at Carol. Her face was grave as if she knew that Milla couldn't be saved unless they gave into Brevon's demands. She then looked over at Torque and Terra. Torque, having befriended Milla last year, was worried for her as expected. To him, it was like seeing one of his crew members in danger. He had experienced plenty of this in his time as a Chaser and yet he still couldn't keep the worry off of his face as he watched Brevon hold his dagger close to Milla's neck. Terra barely even knew Milla and yet she looked deathly concerned for her. Terra had seen many people slaughtered by the villain's hand before and she couldn't bear to see it again. She also glanced over at Natalya. For once in her in life, Natalya looked scared. She was fixated on Brevon and Milla, clearly concerned for the young dog's life. Ironic considering she had once threatened to behead her to make Lilac play nicely with her last Christmas. Then Lilac looked over at Miguel and Lela. They were of course in tears and going hysterical. They actually tried pleading with the alien as if hoping to break through his black heart and make him see face.

"L-L-Lord B-Brevon! P-please! Let her go!" whimpered Lela, "Y-y-you're s-s-scaring my daughter! L-look a-at her! She's terrified!"

"For heaven's sakes, please don't hurt her!" cried Miguel, "Surely you're not THAT heartless as to kill a child?!"

**"Age has no matter in these situations." **Brevon snorted, **"I'll kill anybody no matter how old they are. And this child's life is about to be cut VERY unless stop wasting time pleading with me and hand over the Dark Stone! That is…unless you WANT her to die." **

"Help me!" Milla wailed as Brevon pressed the sharp edge of the dagger blade against her throat. It was pressing lightly against her skin yet the dog was afraid that moving her head even a millimetre would get her a nasty cut, maybe a fatal one.

Lilac found herself growing even more scared for Milla. Brevon was losing patience and was getting ready to slice her friend's head off. They had to give in if it meant saving Milla's life! Sighing loudly, the dragon glared at her arch-enemy.

"OK, OK! We give up! We'll give you the damn stone, just leave Milla alone!" she wailed.

**"Thank you." **Brevon growled, **"Now get the stone for me. I'm not letting the child go until I see that stone!"**

"We will…" the dragon muttered, "I'm sorry Milla…I'm sorry everybody…" she added, looking at her friends sadly, "But what choice do we have?"

"Better to try and take down Brevon as a dragon then let him kill Milla…" Carol said grimly.

Lilac nodded. She would much rather allow the outcome to be like that rather than watching one of her best friends die. She turned on her heels and looked over at the blue robot that had accompanied them on the mission. The robot had been hovering on the side lines, water dripping down its chassis as it waited for the need to be used. That was when she had an idea. True they had no choice but to give Brevon the stone, but who said that they couldn't use the robot to fight him? She remembered how her friends had attacked her from behind, aiming at the Dark Stone itself to try and free her from its power. If they could use the mech dragon from the robot's holographic projector feature, they could use it to try and destroy the Dark Stone and turn Brevon back to normal! It seemed that they hadn't totally lost after all. Giving up the Dark Stone would hardly be that big a deal after all. Making sure that she still looked reluctant, Lilac spoke to the robot.

"Can you fetch us the Dark Stone please?" she asked.

"As you wish." the robot replied in a feminine voice that sounded like Syntax's, only deeper.

The robot teleported away in a blue flash of light. Brevon had seen the robot and had been rather surprised at how similar to Syntax it was. Had some other alien race duplicated his tech just like The Chasers? He would see to it that they died most gruesomely for that. The robot had teleported away from Brevon's ship and into The Magister's treasure vault. The Dark Stone had been put there for safe-keeping. Nobody would ever discover the gem in there. The vault was secret and was well-hidden in The Magister's palace. Only he, Neera Li and General Gong knew where it was. The robot had seen him put it in there after everybody had gone into the healing spa. The robot saw the Dark Stone, glowing its usual purple glow up on a shelf high up off the ground. The robot grabbed the Dark Stone and teleported back to Lilac and her friends. Being a servant bot, it was not programmed to ask questions or wonder about its master's orders. It just followed them without question. Upon appearing, Lilac stepped to the side and ushered the robot forward. She didn't dare touch the Dark Stone herself, the robot would have to deliver it to the alien.

"OK freak, here's the Dark Stone! Now let Milla go!" Lilac demanded.

**"As you wish…" **the nefarious world conqueror sneered, **"Though all you've done is just give her a few more precious seconds to live. Hardly worth giving up the Dark Stone for…"**

He then took his dagger away from Milla's throat and hurled the dog straight towards Lilac as if she was some bundle of clothes being disposed of into the wash. Milla hit the floor but she didn't seem hurt as she picked herself up very shortly afterwards and threw herself straight into her parent's arms. Miguel and Lela embraced their weeping child, relieved to have her back safely in their arms and away from Brevon. They saw the thin cut Brevon had left on the puppy's neck, relieved that that was all it was, just a thin cut. It could have been much worse had they not given into Brevon's demands. Natalya on the other hand didn't seem to care that Milla was safe now. She watched as the blue servant bot floated towards Lord Brevon, the Dark Stone in its tendrils. Natalya grabbed Lilac by the shoulders, her face full of anger and fear as she stared down at the teen-dragon.

"HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!" the dragon screeched frantically, "WE'RE ALL DEAD NOW LILAC! THAT MONSTER'S GOT THE DARK STONE AND IS GONNA USE IT TO KILL US ALL! WHY THE HELL DID YOU GIVE IT TO HIM?!"

"Relax Natalya, I've got an idea." Lilac reassured the hysterical woman, "And it's an idea that's bound to work too. We're not dead yet. Trust me." she added, winking at Natalya.

Natalya visibly seemed to relax, just as Lilac had told her to. If Lilac had an idea then chances were she had no reason to worry. She wondered for a moment what her beloved former student was planning as the robot handed Brevon the Dark Stone. The alien snatched it eagerly as if it was the most precious thing in the world to him. The robot retreated backwards as Brevon grinned wickedly at his prize. Being full of negative emotions, the Dark Stone instantly began its evil work on him. The gem glowed brightly and Brevon found himself surrounded by a luminous purple aura. He could feel the power feeding into his powerful body and he cackled maniacally, throwing his arms up in triumph. He had won! He was using the Dark Stone's power! He was finally going to destroy Avalice! Now nobody would dare stand up to him again!

**"Yes! YEEEEEESSSSSSSS!" **the crazed alien cried out delightedly, **"I have the power…now this planet will be reduced to cinders! I HAVE WON! NOBODY WILL EVER STAND AGAINST ME AGAIN! AH, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA!"**

His laughing soon turned into terrifying, monstrous roars as his body began to transform. His size began to grow and his body began to mutate, breaking through his cape and armour with ease. The Avalicians and Chasers could only watch in horror as their worst nightmare came true. Lord Brevon was beginning to become a huge, monstrous dragon, just as Lilac had earlier. Lightening flashed and thunder boomed as the alien changed shape. His body became long and serpent-like with four stumpy legs and a long whippy tail studded with spikes at the end. A row of spikes appeared down his back all the way to the base of his tail. Huge, leathery wings sprouted out from just behind his shoulders, the wingspan reaching at least twenty-feet. His head became huge and monstrous looking, his mouth crammed with sharp teeth, his eyes glowing red with hatred and his unibrow becoming a pair of horns just between his eyes. The Dark Stone had embedded itself into his chest, glowing malevolently as its power radiated through the evil warlord's new draconian body. Lord Brevon looked totally monstrous, a huge, long, scaly dragon of destruction waiting to cause certain death to everything and everybody. He reared his head and let out an ear-splitting roar that was as loud as the booming thunder around them. Rain showered down from his long scaly body and lightening flashed behind him, giving him an intimidating silhouette. Everybody let out screams of terror at the sight of the beast.

"Well, if Brevon wasn't scary enough before, he's scary as all hell now!" shrieked Carol.

"Even I'm reluctant to insult him now!" yelped Terra.

"Lilac, this is the end for us!" cried Torque, "We're all doomed!"

"No we're not…" the dragon replied, "Time for my plan to be put into action!"

Lilac then sprang towards the blue robot and grabbed a hold of its tendrils. The robot carried Lilac up off the ship, the others watching her in amazement. Carol, Milla and Torque knew what was going to happen next. They had seen it for themselves last year. Now they understood Lilac's plan. It seemed their friend wasn't totally out of her mind after all.

"OK robo-girl, do your thing!" Lilac ordered, "Unleash the dragon within you!"

The robot obeyed and activated its holographic emitter. At first, a holographic image of a dragon's head appeared out of the robot's optic like a film out of a projector. But then the hologram began to grow in size and completely engulf the robot that was making it. The hologram formed the image of a huge, somewhat mechanical looking dragon with a long body made up of huge spheres covered with red dots across the back. It had a head with three curved horns on either side, huge reptilian blue eyes, a mouth crammed with sharp teeth and a long "beard" strand on its chin. It had no limbs. The hologram solidified itself, a potent feature that the robot contained and part of the reason it had been so effective in the fight against Brevon in the snowy mountains last year. Lilac was perched directly on top of the dragon's head. It felt awesome to be riding on top of the blue holo-dragon again. It made Lilac feel grand and that she could take on anything. Miguel, Lela, Terra and Natalya stared in disbelief at the holo-dragon whereas Carol, Milla and Torque cried out for joy.

"Oh yeah! Lilac's got her big secret weapon once again!" Carol cheered.

"She'll stop Brevon now she has that thing!" exclaimed Milla.

"Well blow me down..." Natalya gasped, "Lilac truly is special after all..."

"How on Avalice has she done that?!" gasped Miguel.

"The robot did it dearie." Lela corrected, "One has to wonder who in the world invented that amazing machine..."

"Well whoever invented it, I could just kiss them right now!" screeched Terra, "I think Brevon may well meet his match here!"

"He will indeed." Torque insisted, "Lilac used that holo-dragon against his forces last year. She wiped a good chunk of them out with ease and took out Syntax with little effort. Brevon's got a tough match ahead of him."

"The sparkly twit can use that thing as much as she likes, she'll never defeat Brevon!" Serpentine declared, "My master will annihilate her!"

"You shut up!" snapped Terra, knocking the general out with a quick stun-blast.

"Thanks Terra." chuckled Torque.

Terra just smiled. It felt good to knock Serpentine out. She hated him almost as much as she hated Brevon. With the general knocked out, the two Chasers looked up at Lilac and her holo-dragon. The huge, blue beast roared loudly, challenging Dragon Brevon to a fight. Dragon Brevon glowered at his nemesis with hateful red eyes. Just something to destroy, that was all it was in his eyes. He roared and flapped his wings heavily. He charged towards the holo-dragon, jaws open wide and ready to snatch up Lilac from right atop her weapon's head. The holo-dragon just fired a powerful beam from its mouth straight at the draconian menace. Dragon Brevon cried out a pained screech as he was hit by the blast. It shook off the blow and glared at Lilac. Despite being destruction craving and mindless, he still very much remembered his enemy and wanted nothing more than to see her dead. He would incinerate her or even better, eat her alive. Dragon Brevon roared again and came flying towards Lilac. The holo-dragon just came hurling towards Brevon, its rider full of determination and anger. Brevon had pushed her around for far too long. It was time to end it.

"Brevon! By the power invested in me, I will see you dead!" Lilac declared, "Avalice will sleep peacefully tonight and you will never, EVER, menace anybody again!"

The holo-dragon then unleashed a bombardment of small blue spheres that erupted from out of its head and came hailing towards Dragon Brevon. Dragon Brevon saw the attack coming and he stopped any of the shots from hitting him by unleashing a torrent of flames from the pit of his throat. The flames were a fiery orange with a slight purple aura around them. The flames stopped the holo-dragon's attack but once the flames parted, the holo-dragon came sailing towards the evil behemoth. Brevon only just had time to register this before the mechanical beast slammed head-first into his chest, aiming straight at the Dark Stone. The snake-bodied, four-legged dragon let out a bloodcurdling howl, the Dark Stone reacting painfully with the attack that had been launched on it. Brevon raised his right front limb and slashed down towards Lilac. The dragon hopped backwards, leaving the holo-dragon's head to take the attack. The hologram technology was strong enough to withstand attacks like that so no damage had been done. But it couldn't withstand every attack. Brevon opened up his huge jaws and fired huge tongues of flames at the holo-dragon. The blue draconian creature was hit by the flames, its eyes closing to shield themselves from the light of the fire. The holo-dragon couldn't really feel pain but the attack had left its strength a little drained. This gave Dragon Brevon the perfect opportunity to swing its tail towards its technology-based opponent. The tail slammed into the side of the dragon's head, knocking it sideways and nearly flinging Lilac clean off of its head. She clung on tightly to save herself from falling off. The holo-dragon regained itself and Lilac shook herself off.

"Come on old girl, you can do it. Don't give up." she said softly, "Let's show this green maniac what happens when he messes with a dragon!"

It seemed that Lilac was able to channel her emotions into the holo-dragon's computerized brain. For when Lilac displayed any enthusiasm, it seemed to regain whatever strength it had lost. The dragon came charging towards Brevon, its mouth open wide and ready to unleash another hyper-beam attack. Brevon fired back at the dragon, a huge spear of fire slamming into his opponent's beam attack. The two attacks were evenly matched, failing to push each other back even a millimetre. Lilac grunted. Her weapon had to succeed, it just had to! But then she suddenly realized something. With the holo-dragon attacking Brevon and keeping him at bay, she could attack the Dark Stone! Brevon had left it vulnerable for her! Curling up into a sparkling ball, Lilac Dragon-Boosted straight at the purple gem embedded in her enemy's chest. The attack caused Brevon's fire attack to die in his throat and him to cry out in pain. The holo-dragon's beam attack, now with nothing stopping it, hit the evil dragon straight in the face and made him roar in anguish. Brevon backed away before Lilac could attack him again. The holo-dragon flew down and caught Lilac just before she could fall to the ground. The teen-dragon landed on top of its head and she commanded it to attack once again.

Her technologically advanced dragon came charging towards Brevon, aiming once again for the Dark Stone. Unfortunately, the villainous, possessed alien noticed this and realized the Dark Stone was its weak spot so he instantly saw to keeping it protected. He turned his back on the holo-dragon, allowing it to launch blue spheres at him and take the punishment from behind. Then he raised his tail and swatted the dragon aside, almost throwing Lilac off of its head again. To Lilac, it was like her ride had been hit by a giant flyswatter.

The holo-dragon had been swatted to hard that Lilac was amazed she had even managed to hold on and stay riding on top of the thing. She knew that she couldn't keep it up forever though. Brevon would knock her off if he managed to get a lucky hit like that again and if she fell off, the holo-dragon would be like a plane without a pilot. But would the robot just attack on its own freewill instead of just following Lilac's orders if she was knocked off? It was possible but the Avalician didn't want to risk it. There was too much at stake to take any risks. She had to stay on the dragon, and she had to take down Lord Brevon or Avalice was doomed. As the holo-dragon came charging back towards the Dark Stone dragon, the Avalicians and Chasers watched intently from on Brevon's ship, trying to see what was happening while keeping the rain out of their eyes.

"Who's winning?" asked Milla nervously.

"It seems evenly-matched so far…" Torque murmured, "…I doubt it'll stay that way though."

"I bet Lilac will beat him eventually! If she keeps hitting the Dark Stone, she's bound to beat Brevon!" Carol declared, "And we know she can do it! She stopped him before, she can do it again!"

"And I'll actually get to see it happen this time!" Terra squealed excitedly, "Though I have a quick question. Will that holographic-dragon-robot-thingy last forever?" she questioned curiously.

"No…it burnt out after use when Lilac used it last year." Torque replied, "So Lilac better finish the fight otherwise she's done for."

"Well if that thing has limited use then why are we sitting around doing nothing?!" the female Chaser shrieked, "We should help Lilac defeat that monster!"

"And how do you suppose we do that then madam?" Natalya asked sternly.

"We're standing on a blinking ship!" Terra retorted, motioning to the vessel they were standing on, "We can use that to blow Brevon sky high!"

"I dunno…won't Brevon have lots of people in there?" Carol asked doubtfully, "We haven't got the time to run around the ship looking for the controls and beat up his crew. And we might accidentally hit Lilac if we use the ship to shoot at Brevon."

"There's only one thing for it. Lilac needs a distraction." Torque declared, "And I will be that distraction."

The Chaser whipped out his twin pistols and prepared to take off. He didn't often willingly take part in big battles such as this. But he didn't care about what he usually did now. All he cared about was helping his love defeat Brevon. He knew that he shouldn't be in love with Lilac but what the leader of the Coalition of Planets didn't know wouldn't hurt him. Torque remembered how helpful Lilac had been in his cause to stop Lord Brevon and save Avalice. He was going to help Lilac save Avalice in return. At the very most, it would make him proud to save the world again alongside his Avalician love interest. Just as he was about to take off, Terra suddenly ran up to him and grabbed his arm.

"No! You can't go out there alone!" Terra cried desperately, "You're vulnerable! Brevon will roast you alive!"

"Terra's right Torque, you can't just fly up there and take pot shots at Brevon! What if he kills you?!" shrieked Carol.

"Please don't go! We don't want you to die!" whimpered Milla.

"And if I don't help Lilac, she'll die once that robot's power runs out!" snapped Torque, "I don't care what any of you say, I'm going to help Lilac and if I die in the attempt, it'll be worth it!"

"But what about your crew?" asked Terra worriedly, "They can't function without you!"

"You can lead them in my place." the male Chaser said with a warm smile, "Being my second in command and all, you're adequate for the job."

The female Chaser stared at Torque as if he had just spoken a foreign language. Torque actually thought she would be adequate for leading his crew should he die in his attempt to help Lilac save Avalice? Despite the mistakes she'd made and the fact she'd knocked out Mayor Zao earlier, he really thought that about her? The purple-armoured alien was speechless.

"Oh…Torque I…I uh…I…" Terra stammered.

"Don't mention it buddy." Torque said kindly, "Now then, I'm going to help my draconian friend take down the galaxy's biggest enemy once and for all!"

Before anybody could stop him, Torque activated his jet boots and the Chaser headed on up towards the titanic battle up above in the rainy sky. Carol, Milla, Miguel, Lela and Terra watched as Torque flew up, hoping dearly that he would be safe and that he would make it out alive. Natalya was watching with fascination in her red eyes.

"Such a brave boy…" she murmured, "And doing this for Lilac no less…I never knew just how special my little dragon truly was. Oh Dawn…if only you could see your precious daughter now…"

The brief thought caused Natalya to put her hands over her heart and think about Lilac's long lost mother. It would give her great joy to see how amazing Lilac was now, fighting to save the world more than once and even being an inspiration to an alien. Truly special and utterly amazing indeed…

Up in the sky, Lilac and Brevon were firing at each other again. Brevon unleashed a torrent of flames from out of his mouth and onto the tail section of the holo-dragon. The attack destroyed several red dots on three of the spheres that made up the dragon's body, rendering them weaker and more vulnerable to an attack. The holo-dragon's body still had plenty of spheres that made it up, another seven in total, and made it big and long but it wouldn't survive for much longer if its whole body was destroyed. Lilac looked over at the three spheres that now had no red dots left. Those were the weak points and Lilac couldn't afford to let Brevon take advantage of them. She had to destroy the Dark Stone now. She focused her attention on the gem embedded in her enemy's chest and ordered her hi-tech weapon to shoot at it. The holo-dragon fired a powerful beam at the Dark Stone but Brevon blocked the blow with his wing. The Avalician cursed loudly. How could she destroy the Dark Stone if Brevon kept blocking her attacks?! Then she had an idea. How could he block the attacks…if he couldn't use his wings anymore?

Lilac commanded her hi-tech dragon to fly up towards Brevon and head for the wings. The holo-dragon responded and then opened its mouth. It didn't fire a beam attack at Brevon this time. Instead, it chomped down viciously on the wing, so hard that it ended up drawing blood. Brevon howled angrily at his opponent and he tried flapping his wing to make the holo-dragon let go. The mechanical beast had a bite stronger than even a dinosaur's. Brevon couldn't possibly make it let go. Lilac smirked delightedly at this. How cross Brevon must be to flap his wing furiously but fail miserably to get her off of him! But she ended up having to let go as Brevon opened up his mouth and fired another spear of flames at the Avalician. The holo-dragon hastily let-go and ducked down to avoid being incinerated. The Dark-Stone Dragon made a faint facial feature that looked almost like a gloating smile at his opponent and then he swung his huge head down towards Lilac. Lilac screamed and leapt out of the way as Dragon Brevon's head slammed down onto the head of the holo-dragon. The holographical but very much solid-feeling dragon let out a sound that reminded Lilac of a cry of pain and then suddenly, it began to dip down towards the ground. Lilac ran towards its head and quickly commanded it to pull up. The holo-dragon obeyed and began swooping back towards Brevon. Brevon saw it coming and he swooped down towards Lilac, a look of death in his red eyes. Both dragons fired powerful blasts at each other again, the flames and beams slamming into each other like heavy metal punches. The attacks ended up cancelling each other out and both dragons ended up circling around each other. They both fired at each other, the holo-dragon's beam hitting Brevon across the tail and Brevon's fire incinerating the holo-dragon's tail. Both opponents recoiled from their attacks, both dragons very much damaged by the onslaughts. Then they slammed their heads against one another as if they were trying to have a sumo match with their heads.

Lilac could feel the holo-dragon straining as it pushed against its fierce opponent, trying as hard as possible to force it backwards through the sky. But then lightening flashed down and struck the holo-dragon, causing it to lose some of its pushing strength and give Brevon the victory. The alien-turned-dragon forced Lilac back by flicking his head upwards and then he fired spears of flames at the hi-tech beast's body. The purple-skinned dragon clung on tight, feeling the heat underneath her as her dragon was hit. Then Brevon finished off with a mighty tail whip that sent the holo-dragon spiralling through the air in a dizzy spin. It was like being walloped by a giant whip, albeit a scaly one. Lilac cried out as she was spun, trying desperately to get the holo-dragon under control. For a moment, she found herself in a demented merry-go-round that refused to stop. But then the holo-dragon regained control and started flying back towards Dragon Brevon. It didn't look too good with some noticeable damage on its body and three of its spheres missing, giving it a body of only seven metal spheres now. The robot's power would surely wear off soon. That gave Lilac a nasty thought. What if it ran out? Would she fall to her death or be killed by Brevon first? Lilac couldn't decide for a minute which fate was worse. But what would make it awful was the feeling of failure. She couldn't bear to think that she had failed to save Avalice. No…she couldn't let that happen!

"Come on old girl, we can beat him!" Lilac declared, "We're not letting Brevon win this one! Let's annihilate him once and for all!"

But just as Lilac was about to get back into the action, she saw something flying up towards Brevon. Something small and flying with jet boots. To her surprise, it was none other than Torque! Lilac stared at the Chaser as he headed towards his arch-enemy. She knew Torque as meek and mild yet serious when he needed to be but she had no idea he would ever do something this brave. But she supposed that if Torque was brave enough to fight her when corrupted by the Dark Stone then why not Brevon? She watched her friend fly up to Brevon's chest and unleash a volley of laser shots at the Dark Stone. The shots felt like a fist slamming into his sternum, the Dark Stone sending spasms of pain through Brevon's body as it reacted painfully with the bombardment it was receiving. To the alien Chaser, this felt good. Taking pot shots at Brevon without needing to hide inside his mech-suit was definitely satisfying for him. Lilac's holo-dragon flew closer to the Chaser so Lilac could call over to him.

"Hey Torque!" the dragon cried out, "Thanks for coming to help me!"

"Anytime Lilac!" Torque shouted back at her, "I figured you needed a distraction of some kind so we could take Brevon down!"

"And you're doing brilliantly!" Lilac cried excitedly, "Now I can add insult to injury!"

Torque could tell what his female friend was thinking. As he shot at the Dark Stone in Brevon's chest, Lilac could fire at it too and because Brevon was currently in agony, he couldn't defend himself from their attacks. The holo-dragon positioned itself directly head of Dragon Brevon's chest, its jaws opening wide and a powerful beam building up in its throat. The attack would certainly do some damage to the alien-turned-dragon when it fired. Torque stopped shooting at Brevon and flew back so Lilac could get a clear shot at the Dark Stone. The dragon eyed the evil, glowing gem with nothing but hatred and contempt in her veins. The stone had ruined her reputation in Shang Mu, it was time to take it out before it could ruin anybody else's lives. The holo-dragon fired a huge, blue beam at the Dark Stone, hitting it squarely in the middle and causing Brevon to shriek in agony, his roars louder than the booming thunder in the stormy skies above. After the attack had finished, Brevon winced tensely. His chest hurt more than anything he had ever experienced before in his life. He'd never been in so much pain before. Surprisingly enough though, the Dark Stone was still intact despite the heavy damage done to it! It was showing some signs of damage, thin cracks appearing in the corners of the gem. It wouldn't survive many more onslaughts if Lilac and Torque kept bombarding it as they had been doing. The two stared at the damaged Dark Stone with glee.

"We're managing to break it! Yes!" Lilac hollered, "Come on Torque, let's finish it off!"

"Allow me to set you up for the finishing blow." Torque said eagerly, flying towards the monstrous dragon and preparing to shoot at the Dark Stone again.

For a brief moment, the Chaser wondered what would happen if the Dark Stone was destroyed. Would Lord Brevon simply turn back to normal like Lilac did when the stone had been removed from her earlier? Or would it actually kill him? Torque didn't care if it did kill him. The universe would be better off without Lord Brevon's evil presence causing terror and destruction among the many worlds the universe harboured. The evil tyrannical warlord had done enough damage to the universe, especially Avalice. It would be beneficial for everybody if Lord Brevon died right here and now. Torque aimed his pistols at the Dark Stone and prepared to fire again. But unfortunately, the Dark Stone-possessed alien knew what he was going to do and using his good wing, he blocked Torque's attacks. The shots hammered harmlessly against the thick, leathery skin of his wing. The Chaser tried flying over Brevon's wing so he could get a better shot at the Dark Stone. But then Brevon raised his head and fired flame spears at him to make him back off. Hastily, Torque flew backwards to avoid the flames. Lilac's holo-dragon flew in closer to Dragon Brevon to have another shot at the Dark Stone. The hi-tech beast fired sphere blasts at Brevon, hitting him up, down and centre as they fired but Brevon was already defending his chest with his good wing again. He even forced his injured wing forward to take some of the blows. His injured wing began hurting as the shots hit it but he could handle it. It wasn't as painful as being hit in the Dark Stone.

As soon as Lilac's attack had finished, Brevon unshielded himself and fired huge tongues of flames towards the holo-dragon. The holo-dragon tried to dodge but the flames hit it, scorching it and throwing it backwards across the sky. Lilac got badly burnt from the flames but luckily, the holo-dragon had protected her from most of the fire so it didn't incinerate her. Most of the red dots on the remainder of the dragon's body had gone out, meaning that the powerful, highly-advanced hologram wouldn't be able to survive for much longer. The Avalician looked despairingly at the blank dots, ignoring the pain her burns were giving her. She had to finish this now or she'd never survive the fight. She commanded the holo-dragon to fly on towards Brevon. Brevon seemed to have the same idea for he flew towards the holo-dragon, jaws open wide and ready to fire another attack. Lilac waited until the Dark-Stone Dragon fired another breath of flames before commanding the holo-dragon to fly over the attack and zoom straight towards the monster's head. Brevon just had time to register the fact his enemy was coming towards him before he received a beam attack to the head. The beam felt like somebody had just used a flamethrower on his scalp, the beam searing hot and hurting him immensely. As soon as the attack had finished, the holo-dragon charged into Brevon's head and butted him directly in the cranium with its nose. Brevon retaliated by flicking his head upwards and throwing the holo-dragon's head backwards. Then he lunged forward and chomped onto one of the spheres that made up the holographic beast's body. Lilac cried out as Brevon sank his teeth deep into the sphere. Luckily for her, Brevon had given her a useful target. The dragon leaped into the air and kick-slammed down onto Brevon's eye. The alien-turned-dragon bellowed in rage as the girl's booted foot slammed into his eye. He reared his head up and roared to the heavens as if wanting the sky to punish Lilac for doing this.

The she-dragon hopped back onto the holo-dragon and commanded it to head-butt Brevon in the chest while he was still roaring in pain. Unfortunately, the attack was time just a fraction too late. Brevon recovered from the attack inflicted on his eye and he lowered his head to fire straight at his opponent. Lilac screamed in terror as flames shot out from Brevon's mouth and hit the holo-dragon straight in the head. The flame incinerated the head instantly. The holo-dragon let out a noise that sounded almost like a wail of despair as it was vaporized by the attack. The head was where the robot was concealed. Destroy the head, and the hologram disappears. The holo-dragon's body vanished into thin air and the robot that made up the physical hologram was reduced to ashes by the searing flames. She would never be able to use it again. Now that the holo-dragon was gone, Lilac found herself suddenly plummeting down towards the rain-soaked ground below. She screamed a blood-curdling scream as death came rushing up towards her. But fortunately, Torque was on hand to catch her just in time. He flew down towards the falling dragon and caught her in his arms. Lilac had closed her eyes, expecting to feel nothing as she became a nasty splotch on the ground. But she could feel herself being carried back towards Brevon's ship. She opened her eyes, grateful to see Torque carrying her up to safety.

"Oh thank you!" Lilac gasped.

"Welcome." the Chaser said modestly, "Well…this isn't good. We've lost our best weapon."

"We can still take Brevon down!" Lilac insisted, "We just have to hit him in the Dark Stone until it breaks! We can do it!"

"How is it no matter how tense the situation is, you still refuse to give-up?" Torque asked.

"Giving up gets nobody anywhere." the dragon replied, "I don't believe in giving up."

"If only all people were as brave as you..." the Chaser said with admiration. Lilac's valour was one of many things that had attracted him to her.

"Torque, LOOK OUT!" Lilac suddenly screamed, her voice so loud and sudden that Torque nearly dropped her accidentally.

The Chaser turned his head and received the shock of his life. Brevon was right behind the two and he had raised his tail to the side, waiting to whip the two with it and send them hurling through the air. Torque knew that he wouldn't have time to dodge the attack. He only had a split-second to do something and seeing how he was close enough to Brevon's ship, he knew just what to do. He hurled Lilac into the air as if throwing a ball, sending the purple-scaled girl flying towards the ship's left wing. Brevon's tail slammed straight into him the moment Lilac took flight. Lilac had been spared the blow but Torque was hit full on by the huge, scaly tail. To him, it was like being hit by a truck. He didn't have time to register any pain from the blow as the impact was so hard that he passed out. He was unconscious before he even hit Brevon's ship. Lilac landed down on the ship's wing and hastily climbed up onto the fuselage. She saw her friends gathering around the unconscious Torque. Upon seeing this, the dragon instantly feared the worst. Was Torque dead? She couldn't bear the thought of it for one minute. Instinctively, Lilac ran over to see her friend. Carol and Milla looked too horrified to speak, Terra looked as if she was going to faint, Miguel and Lela looked horrified and Natalya didn't seem sure if she should be as horrified as the others. Lilac threw herself down on her knees and she placed her hands on Torque's chest, feeling for a heartbeat.

"Torque!" she shrieked, "Oh gosh, please be OK!"

She could feel her eyes welling up. She'd been through too much lately to just lose a friend like Torque. He couldn't die on her now! She managed to pick up a weak heartbeat from the Chaser as she felt his chest. He was alive. But he wouldn't be for long unless Brevon was stopped right now. With rage consuming her, Lilac took Torque's twin pistols and picked herself up. She knew what she had to do. She was going to end this fight once and for all.

"Everybody, get Torque outta here." the dragon ordered, "I'm going to stop Brevon once and for all!"

"How are you gonna do that without the holographic dragon thingy?" asked Carol, her voice full of concern.

"I'll just use these to shoot the Dark Stone to pieces." Lilac replied, showing Carol the twin pistols she'd taken from Torque, "He's going to pay for hurting Torque!"

"You be careful Little Miss Heropants." the wildcat said worriedly, "I almost lost you back in Shang Mu, I can't lose you for real."

"I'll be fine Carol, don't worry." Lilac insisted, "Now go!"

Carol obeyed. She ran over to the others and allowed Milla to carry her off of Brevon's ship and onto the ground below. Lela carried Miguel and Natalya, straining a little due to the fact she wasn't used to carrying much weight and Terra carried the unconscious Torque, shedding a small tear for her best friend. She hoped that Torque would be OK. Now her friends were out of the way, Lilac fixed her steel gaze on Lord Brevon. The huge dragon loomed before her, a gesture on his face that looked almost like a smirk of triumph. He was confident, in total control of the fight. He was going to win easily. All he had to do was destroy the ship with Lilac on it. True his own crew would go down too but sacrifices had to be made. Brevon opened up his mouth, the inside of his throat glowing orange as fire built up inside for a powerful, fiery attack. Lilac saw her chance. Brevon had left himself unprotected because he was preparing to attack. She aimed the guns at the Dark Stone and opened fire. The shots blasted out of the barrels of the pistols and traversed quickly through the short distance between the two dragons into the Dark Stone mounted in the evil dragon's chest. Brevon let out a bellowing roar as he was bombarded by the attack. The shots were relentless, Lilac keeping the triggers squeezed and refusing to let go of them. The pistols wouldn't stop shooting unless Lilac let go of the triggers. Lilac was not going to stop until she felt like she was ready for the killing blow. Brevon was in so much pain that he no longer had control of his own body. He couldn't defend himself for he was too busy shrieking in agony to make his wings fold over in front of him. The Dark Stone began to crack heavily, chunks of the gem breaking away and sprinkling down to the ground below. It was getting closer and closer to being destroyed. Lilac could sense it and that was why she threw away the pistols. She wanted to finish this fight with her bare hands. As Brevon contorted with pain, Lilac jumped up into the sky and she Dragon-Boosted straight into what remained of the Dark Stone. She hit the gem like a solid fist against soft flesh. The dragon roared menacingly as she churned away at the damaged gem. Brevon screeched a horrible screech of anguish, unable to defend himself from Lilac's rage.

"NOBODY. HURTS. **TOOOOOOOOOOORQUE!**" Lilac screamed, finally breaking through the Dark Stone and destroying it instantly.

With the Dark Stone completely destroyed, Lord Brevon was no longer able to maintain his dragon form. But Lilac had done more than just destroy the Dark Stone. She had left a huge, gaping hole in the dragon's chest. The hole was so big that Brevon's no longer beating heart was visible for everybody to see. Lilac landed back down on Brevon's ship and watched as the dragon shrunk back down into the familiar figure of Lord Brevon himself. It was like watching a film in reverse. The huge wings shrank back into Brevon's back, his body became stocky and muscular instead of long and snake-like again, his head returned to its normal appearance and his arms and legs returned to normal. He was completely bare just as Lilac herself had been when turning back to normal. The difference between her and him was that Lilac turned back to normal unscathed. Brevon still had the ugly hole in his chest from where the Dark Stone had once been. Brevon's dead body plummeted down to the ground below, leaving Lilac to watch him get smaller and smaller from up on his ship. As Brevon hit the ground, Lilac's face contorted with rage.

"DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU FOR MAKING ME DO THIS!" she screamed as if hoping the very much dead alien could still hear her.

She had lines that she didn't cross, one of them being killing. She had now crossed that line and she didn't like it. But she supposed it was acceptable since Brevon was attempting to destroy her home planet. It was kill or be killed, and Lilac knew that she would rather kill than be killed herself. She was standing completely still, her eyes very far away as Terra flew back up to Brevon's ship to fetch her. On the ground, Lilac's friends had seen Brevon's body fall and were surprised to see that he was dead at long last. Terra grabbed Lilac by the waist and the female Chaser carried the dragon down to the ground below. She could see Lilac wasn't too pleased she had had to kill Brevon. Hopefully the deed wouldn't effect her too badly. The two girls touched down on the ground, the rain still falling, and Lilac was greeted ecstatically by her friends. Carol and Milla hugged her graciously and the dragon returned the hug.

"Yowza Lilac! You did it! You beat Lord Brevon!" the wildcat shrieked ecstatically.

"You saved us all!" the hound hollered, "Well done Lilac!"

"Thanks girls." said Lilac appreciatively, "I can't say I'm too happy I had to kill that monster though. I crossed that one line I refused to cross..." she muttered.

"I can't believe you did it either." Carol said softly, "But don't let it bother you Lilac. Remember, Brevon deserved it. He was a monster who killed heroes and conquered worlds. You killed him. Now the galaxy will be safe from his tyranny at last."

"I assure you Lilac, the universe will hail you as a hero." Terra added gleefully, "The Chasers might even reward you for putting an end to Brevon!"

"Thanks but that won't be necessary." the dragon said modestly, "I'm just protecting my world from those who threaten it. I don't need any rewards. The reward for me is the smiles on everybody's faces after I save the world. You all make me happy to be doing this. You're all worth fighting for."

"Aw thanks Lilac." said Carol happily, "And we appreciate your heroism, even if at times I worry if you'll survive."

"Glad to hear it." said Lilac sweetly, "And you know what? With Natalya turned good and Lord Brevon dead...my...my nightmares are finally over! I don't have to live in fear anymore! I can be my old self again at last!"

With that said, the dragon began to shed tears of happiness, relieved that at long last she would never be plagued by nightmares again. Milla didn't seem to understand why Lilac was crying though.

"Lilac, why are you crying?" she asked.

"Because I'm so happy!" Lilac exclaimed, "Finally, my nightmares are over!"

"We're very glad to hear that dearie." said Lela softly.

"And since you've saved the world again Lilac, I bet Mayor Zao will realize he was wrong and accept you again." said Miguel.

"Well we can show him Brevon's body and..."

Lilac suddenly paused as she realized something she hadn't realized yet.

"Torque!" she yelped, "Is he alright?!"

"He's fine." said Terra, looking over at the Chaser's unconscious body, "I gave him a through check over while you was up there. He has a few broken bones but he seems to be breathing normally and his heart rate's normal. He'll need to go back to the Chaser fleet so he can get medical treatment."

"Oh thank goodness..." said Lilac with relief, "I hope he wakes up so that I can say goodbye to him."

"I'm not sure if he'll wake up anytime soon Lilac." said Terra sadly, "He might take hours to wake up. You should just say goodbye to him now and I'll tell him you said bye when he wakes up."

"Thank you." said Lilac.

She approached Torque's unconscious body and knelt down beside it. Rain trickled down her body, her clothes clinging onto her body due to how drenched they were. She flipped her drenched strand of hair aside and then leant close to Torque's face.

"Torque? When you wake up. Just know that you needn't live in fear anymore." she said softly, "Lord Brevon is dead. The Chasers needn't fear him anymore. I'm not sure if you can hear me...but I'd like to tell you that my nightmares are over. I can be happy again. And I also wanna tell you...that...that..."

She paused to choke back tears before finishing her sentence.

"...Torque...I love you." she whispered.

She then planted a loving kiss on the Chaser's cheek. She imagined that he was very happy to hear those words and that the kiss was something he'd treasure for a long time. Smiling weakly, Lilac closed her eyes and allowed herself a moment of peace, still kneeling beside Torque. The rain was beginning to subside and the clouds were parting. It was midnight, the beginning of a new day. A new day for herself, her friends and all of Avalice to enjoy without a worry in the world...

* * *

><p><em><strong>Brevon's dead! YAY! :D<strong>_

_**This story isn't over yet though. There's some loose ends to tie up first. Join me for the FINAL chapter as we clean up "After The Storm"...**_


	13. Chapter 12: After The Storm

_Chapter 12: After The Storm_

A while later, the Avalicians had arrived back at the Cave of Malevolence, the very place that had housed the Dark Stone until yesterday's events had taken flight. The Chaser's rocket was still there, waiting to be used ever since it had landed yesterday. It was time for Torque and Terra to go home now.

After the big battle with Lord Brevon had concluded, the heroes had taken in Brevon's dead body and Terra had cuffed Serpentine so he could be taken prisoner back to the Chaser fleet. They had taken the body so they could show Avalice that Brevon was dead. The crew on the sole survivor of Brevon's doomed fleet had heard of their master's death and not daring to risk death themselves, especially since Lilac had killed him, they had fled the planet only to then be caught by the Chaser fleet that was in Avalice's orbit and arrested instantly.

While that had happened, the Avalicians had gone to Shang Mu, informed The Magister that they had succeeded in stopping Brevon and the Ruler of Shang Tu had promised to spread the word to Shang Mu and Shuigang. To make sure they believed him, he even had Brevon's dead body photographed so King Dail and Mayor Zao could see for themselves. He had also allowed everybody the privilege of sleeping in the Royal Palace for the night since nobody had had any sleep since the incident with the Dark Stone in Shang Mu. Torque had been isolated from the rest, sleeping peacefully in the palace's medical room while everybody got some much needed sleep. It was now brightening up again, the sun dawning over the world of Avalice once again. The puddles that had formed from the rain had begun sparkling in the bright sunlight.

Now everybody was rested, Lilac, Carol, Milla, Miguel, Lela and Natalya watched as Terra lay Torque down on a hover-bed and prepared to take him on-board the rocket. She had informed the fleet still waiting around Avalice that Torque was brutally injured and would need medical care immediately. She had also told them that Brevon was dead and as proof of his death, they were bringing his body to the man in charge of the Chasers. Torque's crew had been overjoyed and could hardly wait to greet Torque and Terra when they returned. Now was the time for them to return. Terra looked at her Avalician friends sadly as if thinking she would never see them again.

"Well…goodbye everybody." she said, "Thanks ever so much for stopping Brevon at last. You've quite possibly saved millions upon millions of lives last night. You in particular Lilac, deserve all my thanks. You killed Brevon, you're official the Heroine of the Universe." she added, beaming.

"Oh um…thank you." Lilac said modestly, "It was my pleasure to take that monster out for good."

"It's kinda gross that you're dragging his carcass around just to show your boss he's dead." Carol said with her face screwed up in disgust.

"In the Chaser fleet, the enemy's dead body MUST be shown to the fleet otherwise we can't assume they're actually dead." Terra said firmly, "It's standard procedure Carol so we have to do it."

"At least we don't have to see it anymore…" Lela said, cringing.

"Anyway, be sure to let your crew know that I'm honoured to have taken down Lord Brevon and they have my sincerest welcome for what I've done." Lilac said, shaking Terra's hand, "And tell Torque that I love him and hope to see him again soon."

"Oh believe me, he'll be happy to hear that." Terra said with a wink, "Goodbye Lilac. It's been AWESOME meeting you and watching you beat up Lord Bread-Bin!"

Lilac burst out laughing at the insulting name the turquoise alien had used for her deceased enemy.

"Lord Bread-Bin?!" the dragon laughed, "That's a brilliant name! Why didn't I call him that?!"

"Well now you can call him that all you like. He won't mind. He's dead!" chuckled Terra, "So I'll see you and your friends around Lilac. I hope I can come to this awesome planet again, and maybe learn more about it."

"We'll miss you!" Milla piped, "Hope to see you again soon!"

Terra smiled graciously at the adorable puppy. How cute she was. Lilac sure had some good friends with her. The female Chaser then turned her back on everybody and began taking Torque on-board the rocket. But to everybody's surprise, the male Chaser suddenly stirred and slowly opened his eyes! Everybody gasped as they watched Torque awaken from his injuries and glance out at everybody. It was like seeing him rise from the dead. Lilac was over by Torque's side before the Chaser could even speak. The alien looked over at Lilac and smiled feebly at her.

"Hey…Lilac…you're alive." he croaked, "I…ungh…" he paused as he tried to fight off the pain in his broken arms, "…I take it…you beat Brevon?"

"I didn't just beat him Torque. I KILLED him!" the dragon cried out, "I literally killed him! He's dead! Gone forever! Terra's got his body on-board waiting to be shown to your superiors!"

"Am…I…still asleep?" Torque chuckled weakly.

"Let's hope not." snickered Terra.

"It's all true Torque." the dragon insisted, "I destroyed the Dark Stone and that killed him! He has a hole in his chest and everything!"

"Lilac…that's…that's incredible!" Torque stammered, his bruised face managing to show some delight, "Finally…Brevon's gone for good…the Chasers…needn't worry about him…again."

"Indeed. And I won't have nightmares about him anymore, knowing he can't ever menace my planet again." Lilac said brightly, "Oh and Torque, I have something to tell you before you leave."

"Really?" the Chaser asked.

"Yes. Now you're conscious, you'll hear me this time." the dragon said, "Torque…please don't be shocked but…I love you. I really do love you. That's why I miss you so much when you go back to the Chasers."

Torque stared at Lilac. His eyes fixated on the she-dragon's face as if he was trying to work her out. Had he imagined it or did Lilac actually say that he loved her? He was pleased that she had said that though, the dragon's words were greatly comforting to him. He wasn't sure how to respond for a moment but eventually, he worked it out.

"Lilac…I'm…I'm flattered…you feel that way…about me." the Chaser said, holding the dragon's hand, "Since you love me…I'll make sure…that we can…see each other again…more often. I'll…try to…make it…possible."

"I'm glad to hear it." said Lilac brightly, "Goodbye Torque. See you soon."

"And you too…Lilac." Torque replied.

With that said, Lilac leaned towards the injured Chaser and kissed him passionately on the lips. Torque was surprised by the gesture but he didn't mind it. Just yesterday, he and Lilac had almost kissed before Natalya and the Red Scarves had shown up to steal the Dark Stone. And now they were kissing for real. Although Torque knew that he shouldn't be returning the affection Lilac was giving him, he knew that what his boss didn't know wouldn't hurt him. He was actually enjoying the feeling of kissing the dragon girl. He loved her just as she loved him and to finally be locking lips with her was the grandest feeling he'd felt in a long time. There was no shame in love after all and Torque was determined to make sure this love would blossom to its fullest.

The two remained in a deep, loving embrace for a couple of minutes before their lips separated and Terra, who had watched the whole scene with awe, began to take Torque up the boarding ramp into the rocket. Torque just managed to wave goodbye, albeit weakly given the damage his arms had received. Lilac waved back, hoping that their first kiss together wouldn't be their last one. The boarding ramp closed up and Lilac stepped back from the rocket as its engines kicked into gear and pushed the huge, space-faring vehicle up into the sky. It climbed and climbed up into the sky until eventually, it disappeared into the thick, white clouds up above. Torque would be back with his crew any moment now. Lilac could almost imagine Torque giving his report to the crew and showing off Brevon's hideous carcass to prove he was dead. She imagined that Torque likely wouldn't tell anybody he'd kissed her. Maybe it was better that he didn't.

With the rocket now gone, the dragon girl turned to face her friends. Carol and Milla were smiling with awe at her, clearly happy for their draconian friend that she'd found love in Torque.

"You two were really cute when you were kissing." said Carol, "We could practically see the love hearts above your heads!"

"I'm glad that you and Torque love each other!" Milla piped excitedly.

"Thanks girls." Lilac said graciously, "I must admit, it felt kinda weird yet wonderful at the same time, kissing an alien and all. I do hope that Torque can see us more often. But at the same time, I hope he doesn't have to abandon his crew or anything. I love him, but I don't wanna take him away from his duty."

"That just proves you do love him then." said Lela softly, "You're putting his needs above your own. You really are a sweet girl Lilac."

"Our little Milla sure knows a good person when she sees one." Miguel said with a smile, thinking to how Milla had been hanging out with Lilac and Carol before he and his wife had been reunited with her.

"Aw thank you Mr. and Mrs. Basset." said Lilac brightly, "That's one of the nicest things anybody's ever said about me."

The two hounds smiled. Then suddenly, Lilac turned her attention over to Natalya, who had been silent throughout the whole thing. She looked distant, her eyes very far away and her mouth curled down at the corners as if somebody had drawn a rainbow arch on her face. Was she still affected by Brevon's harsh words to her last night? The teen-dragon had a feeling that was the case.

"Hey…Natalya?" she asked.

The older dragon snapped out of her thoughts and looked down at Lilac as if realizing she was there for the first time.

"Oh…Lilac. Sorry about that, I was miles away for a moment." Natalya said.

"I can see that." Lilac replied, "So…I guess you're wondering if I'm ready to forgive you yet?"

"Oh no child. I'm not wondering that at all." Natalya said, "I'm not sure if I even deserve your forgiveness given the beasty way I've treated you and your friends and my delusional desire to make this world perfect. True I've helped save the world but nobody will trust me for a minute. They'll likely just give you all the credit and ignore me. Maybe it's what I deserve."

"But Natalya, you've changed!" Lilac protested, "You don't have to feel this way! You're good now! If you keep doing good things then people will accept you like they've accepted me! Please don't be so morbid."

"Easier said than done I'm afraid my child…" Natalya muttered, her face grim and serious, "I've been committing crimes for far too long to be forgiven so easily. Building a good reputation is not easy you know. I doubt I'll ever succeed at that. Which is why I'm going to do two things…"

She paused as if for dramatic effect and then continued.

"One: I am going to disband the Red Scarves and disclose their new location to The Magister so that they can be arrested again. Two: I am going to allow myself to be arrested. If I'm to prove that I have changed, then letting myself pay for my crimes is the best possible way to prove it. I don't care if I ever get released or not. I'll let justice take its course."

Team Lilac could only stare incredulously at Natalya. Natalya, the leader of the Red Scarves and formerly the cruelest, most ruthless woman in the world, was actually willingly going to let herself be arrested? It seemed that Brevon had given her a bigger wake-up call than anybody could have imagined. The old Natalya wouldn't dream of even saying those words, let alone committing the deed! Carol turned to face Lilac, her face full of bewilderment.

"You know what? It's official. This woman is not Natalya. It must be her identical twin sister! The Natalya I know would NEVER disband the Scarves and let herself be arrested!" the wildcat blustered.

"The old Natalya's well and truly gone..." Lilac murmured, "And I'm glad that's the case. This Natalya's a big step-up from the old one."

She turned to face her former enemy.

"If you wanna do that Natalya, then do it." Lilac said softly, "I don't think you should go so far as to arrest yourself but do what you think is right."

"Indeed...and I feel what I'm about to do is right." the mauve-skinned dragon said, "Once I'm in prison, it's unlikely we'll see each other again Lilac. So for now, I bid you farewell...and continue being that special dragon I always saw you as."

"I told you before, I don't need to be special. It's what I fight for that's special." the lilac dragon said, "But goodbye Natalya. I hope things will look up for you soon."

"You're too kind...but thank you." Natalya said softly, "Farewell everybody. Just know that I apologize for how I've treated all of you and if I'm ever released...it means I'm trusted enough to be back in society. Until that day...have a good live. Everyone of you. And don't squander it on a fantasy like I've done..."

With that said, Natalya turned her back on everybody, her head hung low with despair, and she ran off, leaving Team Lilac to watch her disappear into the distance. As she left, Lilac found herself feeling very sorry for the dragon. She had become so depressed that she was going to just let herself be thrown in prison just so she could pay for her crimes. She supposed she couldn't blame Natalya for that since in a way, she had lived a life of crime over nothing so in a way, she was wanting to punish herself for what she'd done. Very noble but at the same time, quite sad. She hoped Natalya would find her silver lining some day and maybe even be allowed to walk free again. As soon as Natalya disappeared, Lilac turned back to face her friends.

"Well...talk about an eventful day yesterday." she said, "My two worst enemies team up, one of them has a heel-turn, I'm turned into a monster and then I kill Brevon and confess my love for Torque! I think we're in for an easy-going day today."

"I'll say, especially since we don't need to worry about Nataya or Brevon anymore." said Carol, "And the Red Scarves will be locked up again since Natalya's squealing on them so no worries about them either."

"What are we gonna do today Lilac?" asked Milla curiously.

"Well since my treehouse has been burnt down, would anybody care to help me rebuild it?" the dragon suggested brightly.

"Yes!" Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela all shouted in unison.

"Then that's what we're gonna do." said Lilac brightly, "First we'll need supplies and Shuigang will have just the stuff we need to start building..."

* * *

><p>Minutes later, Natalya arrived in Shang Tu and knocked on the door of the Royal Palace. She had been quick to notice that many of The Magister's men were hard at work trying to rebuild the damages that had been inflicted on the city thanks to her blowing up the drainage tunnels yesterday morning. It made Natalya feel sick to think she had done all this for nothing. She heavily regretted ever doing it and hoped that Shang Tu would recover from the destruction she had heartlessly inflicted on it. She waited for a moment before the door opened and she found herself staring at the surprised face of General Gong as he answered the door. She didn't blame Gong for being surprised to see her, he wouldn't have been expecting to see her here on The Magister's own doorstep.<p>

"Natalya?!" he gasped.

"Good morning general." the dragon replied politely, "I am here to turn myself in. I am willingly allowing myself to be arrested for my crimes against Avalice. I feel it's the best way to prove that I am a changed woman and I no longer have any malicious intent towards you or the rest of the world."

She held her hands out as if inviting Gong to slap the cuffs on her. The panda raised an eyebrow suspiciously at Natalya.

"Is this a trick?" he growled.

"It's no trick general." Natalya insisted, "It's the honest truth. And to prove it, I am going to give you information I would never usually give away. The Red Scarves are hiding in Shang Mu. They're in the Shang Mu drainage tunnels. I'm also not going to make any attempts to stop you from arresting them as you storm the tunnels."

Gong looked like he was going to faint. Natalya was not only turning herself in but she was telling him where the Red Scarves were hiding?! What on Avalice had happened to change Natalya so drastically?! Nevertheless, he wasn't going to be ungrateful about it. He wanted the Red Scarves re-arrested so he would take up their boss's advice.

"Very well...I trust you." he said cautiously, "You've proven you've somewhat turned what with getting the Dark Stone out of Brevon's hands and delivering it to us for safe-keeping. I believe you that you're being truthful."

"Thank you general." the dragon replied, "Now then, which cell am I staying in?"

"I will take you there immediately." Gong said, taking Natalya by the wrist and leading her inside, "As a token of thanks, we'll give you the biggest cell in the dungeon. At the very most, we can make your stay more comfortable than the Red Scarves."

"You're too kind..." Natalya murmured.

She allowed herself to be escorted to her cell. Deep inside, she knew that she had made the right decision and she would make the most of her stay in prison since it was unlikely she'd be released for a while. If she ever was released, she would make sure that The Magister didn't regret it...

* * *

><p>Meanwhile in Shang Mu, Spade the Panda was sitting in his own room and reading a letter that he had received earlier this morning. The letter had been sent by Natalya herself. The red-scarf wearing panda recognized his cruel boss's handwriting. It had a style that defined her character in just the words she wrote. Spade had wondered about Natalya for she hadn't returned home last night. He had hoped she had been killed whilst out doing whatever it was she had been doing but to his dismay, she was still alive and he was now reading a letter she'd given him. He was not pleased at all at what the letter had said. He scrunched it up in fury and threw it across the room.<p>

"Damn that woman!" Spade snarled angrily, "She seriously has the nerve to tell me that the Red Scarves are disbanded?! Well she's not getting rid of us that easily..."

He got up to his feet and clenched his fists.

"Well if Natalya wants us disbanded, she's got another thing coming..." the panda growled, "The Scarves are not disbanding. Instead...they're falling under new management. At last...I can command the Red Scarves and unlike Natalya, I'm going to lead them properly! She doesn't want us anymore? Then I'll just lead in her place. Thank you Natalya, you've just given me the breakthrough I needed..."

He smiled wickedly over this delightful turn of events. The dragon had clearly gone off the deep end and no longer wanted to be leader of the Red Scarves anymore. Now was his chance to be leader and this time, Natalya wouldn't be able to punish him for taking charge like she had done last year. Spade could hardly wait to begin his new life as leader of the Red Scarves. And he already had plans on what he was going to do as the new leader...

* * *

><p>Unaware that the Red Scarves were hiding directly underneath his feet, Mayor Zao was also reading a letter of his own. His had come from the Royal Magister himself and he wasn't at all impressed with what he was reading. The letter told him that Lilac was innocent and that the Dark Stone had corrupted her not because she had willingly used it, but because Brevon and Natalya had used it on her. The letter had also come with a photograph of Brevon's dead body to prove he had been on Avalice again. Zao tossed the letter and photo over his shoulder, not believing a single word of it.<p>

"Does The Magister seriously believe me to believe this nonsense?" he scoffed.

**5+ NONSENSE**

"Nataya and Brevon used the Dark Stone on Lilac indeed...what a load of poppycock!" the red panda ranted, "Natalya wouldn't team up with that monster at all! Also Lilac sent Brevon packing last year, he wouldn't dream of setting foot on this planet again! And that obviously fake photo of Brevon's body is not gonna fool me! I know what this is...this is a conspiracy! And The Magister is part of it! He's trying to paint Lilac as entirely innocent just so she can walk around and commit more crimes! Pity for her the Dark Stone's destroyed so she can't use it against me again. But I swear, if that treacherous reptile sets foot in Shang Mu again, I'll have her arrested! She will not get away with her crimes against my city! She will be arrested or my name isn't Mayor Zao!"

He could already imagine what he was going to do if he ever saw Lilac again. He smiled at the thought of seeing the one who had wrecked his city and tried to eat him alive behind bars for life. Lilac wouldn't taste freedom again once he got his hands on her...

* * *

><p>The following night, the people of Avalice were all quietly tucked away in their own beds and going to sleep after a long hard day's work and play. The night was peaceful and still, no rain, lightening or thunder just like there had been last night. The moon was out, glowing brightly in the pitch-black sky. There was not a sign of life anywhere for everybody was in bed asleep...except for one.<p>

Standing on a hilltop in Dragon Valley, a mysterious, robed figure was looking up at the night-time sky as if trying to read something in the stars. It seemed entranced by the moonlight. The figure's robe concealed its entire body, the only thing visible from under the robe being the figure's gloved hands. His right hand held a cane with a sphere on top. The gloves the figure wore were the same colour gloves Lilac wore, light blue. The figure stared at the moon, admiring its beauty and looking at something else, something that he could see spiraling up in the centre of the moonlight. It was a purple vortex of energy similar to the swirling vortex of stars that the Kingdom Stone had become after the events of last year saw it change form. This energy vortex was what had become of the Dark Stone after being destroyed. Much like the Kingdom Stone, it had not truly been "destroyed", it had merely changed form. The energy mass had fled the battle after the stone had been destroyed and now it was up in the sky, waiting to corrupt anybody that dared to come near it.

The robed figure held up his cane and did something amazing. His cane glowed brightly and he began to absorb the Dark Stone's energy into the clear sphere on-top of the cane! The cane was an energy conductor built into the shape of one so nobody would suspect what it really was. Energy conductors were illegal inventions for people had used them to try and steal the Kingdom Stone's energy in the past. The robed man was now using it to absorb the Dark Stone's energy. With the purple vortex of energy now trapped inside the cane, the shrouded Avalician chuckled softly to himself.

"Perfect...just what I need for my plans..." he purred, his accent clearly English and his voice soft, gentlemanly and yet threatening at the same time, "Sash Lilac had better watch her back...for I'm ready to make my move and this world will be mine at last..."

He chuckled delightedly to himself, his laughter unheard by anybody for he was alone in Dragon Valley with nothing but the moon looming over him...

* * *

><p>A whole week had passed since the Dark Stone incident. Avalice had been pretty peaceful since that faithful day with Shang Tu recovering nicely from Natalya's destruction and Shang Mu repairing much of the damages Lilac had unwillingly inflicted on the city when under the stone's influence. Natalya had been behaving herself well in The Magister's dungeon, much to the surprise and pleasure of the people in the Royal Palace. It seemed Natalya was staying true to her word.<p>

In the week that had passed, Lilac's new treehouse had been constructed and now everybody was settling in nicely to the newly rebuilt house. The treehouse was a little bigger than the original with more room inside and a third storey which acted as the attic for the house in-case anything needed to be put away. As a token of thanks for saving Avalice from Lord Brevon's tyranny again, Shang Tu and Shuigang had kindly donated any unwanted furniture to Team Lilac to use in the treehouse. Shang Mu had done the same, although Mayor Zao had been heavily reluctant to do so. The furniture had all been set up and now Carol, Milla, Miguel and Lela were sitting in the new treehouse, waiting for Lilac to come home. She had gone out to get some food so they could have a house-warming party to celebrate their new house. To pass the time, the wildcat and Bassets were just sitting at the kitchen table and talking to each other.

"I've gotta say, this new treehouse is awesome!" Carol exclaimed, "We sure did a good job on building it!"

"I'll say." Milla agreed, "It's a lot roomier too. We'll be very comfortable now the house has more room in it."

"I'm just glad that we all now have a place to live again." Miguel said brightly, "And since the treehouse has been rebuilt, we can pretend it was never burnt down."

"I'll never be able to get the horrific memories of being trapped inside as it burnt down out of my head...but yes, we can indeed pretend it was never burnt down." Lela agreed, "And since the Dark Stone's gone forever, we can pretend that thing never existed."

"It's a pity Mayor Egotist still won't get over it..." Carol muttered, "I hear he still thinks Lilac's a traitor even though we've pretty much told him what really happened and gave him proof we're telling the truth."

"I'm sure he'll see reason eventually." Lela said, although she secretly doubted it, "No matter. Lilac knows that as long as she doesn't set foot in Shang Mu, he can't do anything about her. She's untouchable."

"And maybe once Shang Mu is fully repaired and the Mayor calms down, he'll realize that Lilac's innocent at last." Miguel said, "Either way, we know she's innocent and that's all that matters."

"Indeed." said Milla, "Say mommy and daddy. Do you think Lilac will be home soon?"

Just as she asked that question, the door suddenly opened and Lilac strolled into her newly built home, a big smile on her face. Carol and Milla noticed this with satisfaction. Ever since the Dark Stone incident had been concluded, Lilac had been a lot happier and more cheerful as if nothing had happened and her nightmares were well and truly over. The old Lilac was back at last and Carol and Milla couldn't be happier. The dragon had a flat rectangular box in her hands as well as a couple of carrier bags hooked on one arm. The smell that came from the box and bags was delicious and Carol had a feeling she knew what kind of meal Lilac had decided to pay for the house-warming party.

"Hey everybody!" Lilac cooed enthusiastically, "I'm back and I've brought us the perfect meal to celebrate our new home!"

She put the contents down on the table and opened up the box.

"Who wants a big hulking piece of Shuigang's very own pepperoni supreme pizza?" the dragon cried out, proudly showing off what was in the box.

The box contained an enormous pizza covered in huge strings of mozzarella cheese and dotted with crispy slices of pepperoni. There were herbs sprinkled all over and the crust was thicker than everybody's fingers, suggesting the crust was stuffed. The carrier bags contained slices of garlic bread and boxes of crispy fries. There was even a bottle of Shuigang's own brand of Coca-Cola to drink with the pizza. The smell of the food was glorious. Everybody stared at the food hungrily, ready to tuck in. Lilac smiled at their hungry faces as she got out the pizza cutter and cut herself a slice of the pizza. She then handed the cutter to Carol so she could cut herself a slice of pizza. Then Milla was given the cutter to cut herself a slice and then finally Miguel and Lela. Everybody started tucking into the delicious pizza and as they finished their first slice, Lilac cut herself another piece of pizza and held it up.

"To our new home!" she cried.

"To our new home!" her friends cried in return.

Lilac smiled as she began tucking into her second pizza slice. It felt good to be happy and joyous again, knowing there was nothing to worry about anymore and Avalice was in for more good days ahead. Life was definitely sweet and Lilac knew that her life was now going to get even better with Brevon gone and Natalya good. What more could a dragon ask for...?

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annnnnnnd that's the end of this story! I hope you all enjoyed this story just as much I've enjoyed writing it and I hope to see you all next time.<strong>_

_**Curse of the Dark Stone is finished...but it's not the end of Lilac and her adventures by any means! Join me next time for the thrilling sequel as we enter "The Darkest Day"...see you then readers! :D**_

_**Thanks for reading and I hope to see you again soon! **_


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